Unfinished Business
by Anima Sola 86
Summary: When things come to an end, it is wise to go back to their beginning. At the end of the 2nd War, Ginny Weasley finds herself thrown back in time, with her memory on the loose, facing a situation that makes her question her entire being.
1. Prologue

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**Unfinished Business**

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******Prologue **

A last thought rushed through my head as I fell to the ground.

_The life that I knew was over. _

The war was raging around me, the good fought the bad, the bad killed the good, everyone tried to survive in the last battle until there was nothing left. Families were murdered, friends were slaughtered, and enemies succeeded.

As I was hit by a flash of light, my mind went numb, erasing everything that I ever knew. A deep emptiness filled my soul as I collapsed, my legs unable to hold me any longer.

_It was over._

There were screams around me, noises that had influenced my life ever since the Second War had begun. Suddenly there was silence, as if a heavy, dark blanket had been fallen onto me and everything that surrounded me.

I was caught, motionless, in the deepest darkness I had ever seen, the quietest silence I had ever heard, with the most terrible emotions I had ever felt.

_This is the end._

I, Ginny Weasley, have been sixteen years old on the day that I died.

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**__****Author's Note:**  
Before you ask: this is set somewhere in Ginny's sixth year, so everything that had happened before in the books actually happened (the upcoming one excluded). 

_A very, very, very small prologue to my newest story that popped into my head several days ago. But don't worry, the next two chapters are much longer, I even had to split them up. They are coming the first thing after I uploaded this one.  
_

_For those of you who know that I still have several other stories unfinished, I know, and I am sorry. I promised to finish my Ginny/Cedric story before I even think about writing something else; BUT I couldn't neglect this idea. I grew so fond of this, that I just had to write it down. And I wrote, a lot. And now I am eager to share this with you. I hope you forgive me!_

******_Disclaimer:_**  
_Everything around the Harry Potter universe does not belong to me. I snapped all my knowledge from JKR and mugglenet dot com._

_**EDIT: **If you are reading this story again, you might have noticed that I changed the chapter titles. For those who are new: Yet there are still the old chapter titles in the original chapters, so don't let confusion grab you, even though there might stand _10. Return Of Memory And Misery_ and in the chapter _Chapter 5_ - yes, that is intended xD _


	2. Death Is Not The End

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**Unfinished Business**

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**Chapter 1.1 **

Death was all around me. I could feel it, smell it, taste it. The darkness was blinding, the silence deafening. _Was this how it will be from now on?_ There was nothing. Absolutely nothing. No bright light, no afterlife, no heaven, no hell. There was _nothing_.

Except death.

The sticky feeling that lasted on my tongue. That scratched inside my throat. Tickled on my skin. The horrid sound that rang in my ears. That echoed in my veins. Pushed into my brains.

The sound of footsteps, however, caught me quite off guard.

_Death can walk?_

"Hey! What in Merlin's name are you doing here?"

_And talk?_

The voice that echoed through a seemingly large room was such a disturbance that it actually brought me back to my senses. I felt hard stone beneath me. My hands ran over its smooth surface, its cold running through the tips of my fingers._ I can feel where I am._ But the darkness was still around me, squeezing me further, about to numb my senses again.

_Oh my, I am blind!_

I could feel my heart race up, pumping horridly fast against my ribcage. My mouth fell open, releasing rapid breaths. But my eyes –

_Hold on. Eyes. _Open_ your eyes!_

As I screamed at myself, I realized that I actually squeezed my eyes shut, afraid of what was around me. Afraid of what I might see. They had seen too much horror…

_OPEN YOUR EYES!_

I did, blinked several times to focus and saw a dark ceiling leading into nothingness above me. I moved my eyes left and right and saw huge pillars all around me. _What a large room. What a… strangely familiar large room._

As I then noticed the giant snake heads framing a wide hallway to my left, it dawned on me.

_I've been here before!_

It was then that my eyes landed on the owner of the voice that had brought me back. _This is not how I pictured Death_. A tall figure stood several feet away from me, an enormous tension on an otherwise handsome, young face, jet-black hair matching with the dark surroundings, a surprised yet angry look within narrowed dark eyes.

I sat up very slowly, overwhelmed by the realisation that I could move my arms and legs. That I was not dead. _Or was I?_

"Am I… dead?", I then asked, my voice husky, towards the boy staring down at me.

"No", it came back, sending a jolt of relief through my veins. "But you'll be if you won't explain me what you are doing here!"

_No more relief._

I stared up at the boy whose face was as strangely familiar as the room I was in. Feeling my heart race inside my chest, I swallowed hard.

"I… I don't know", I said honestly, looking around the room in utter confusion.

_I've been here before._

Yet I didn't know where I possibly could be right now. What kind of a room was this? Huge pillars leading into black nothingness above my head, snake statues all around, and – another question popped inside my head – who was _he_ and why was he as familiar as this room?

I tilted my head and studied the person in front of me. Yet the longer I stared at him, the less sure I became that I actually knew him. He certainly didn't know me. So why did I have this feeling inside my tummy?

"Where am I?", I asked, my voice still as hoarse as if I hadn't spoken for a very long time. _What had happened to me?_

But the tall boy – who seemed to be in my age even though his eyes made him look much older – just looked down at me, his jaw clenched, his eyes dark pits full of anger. _Why was he so angry?_

"Please, just tell me where I am", I continued, pleadingly looking up at him, trying hard to ignore his fuming stare.

"I can't tell you where you are", he then answered, his voice ice cold. "But I need you to tell _me_ how you've got here?"

I furrowed my forehead. "I really don't know how I've got here", I said, half to him, half to myself. "I just… woke up here."

The black-haired boy raised an eyebrow, still glaring at me as if I was a ghost.

A ghost._ Oh dear, I couldn't possibly be a ghost, could I?_

I instantly looked down at myself, checking if I might be semi-transparent or anything. But luckily, I wasn't. I was wearing some kind of uniform; a pleated skirt, a blouse and a grey sleeveless sweater with an emblem on its left side. I stared down at the emblem, totally unsure what it meant. When I looked back up at the boy, I noticed that he was wearing something similar; grey trousers matching his grey sweater, yet he was wearing some kind of a robe over it, a black robe that held the same emblem I was wearing.

He seemed to notice my stare and followed it, his eyebrows knitted, onto the emblem.

"What is that?", I asked bluntly.

He looked at me again, his anger halfway hidden behind a wave of confusion.

"That's the Hogwarts crest", he said, his tone semi-irritated, semi-taken aback.

"Hogwarts?", I repeated and looked down at the emblem again. There was a large H in the middle of four pictures of different animals; a snake, a lion, a badger and an eagle. It had a slight familiarity, just as this room and the boy that still stared down at me as if I was insane.

"This school", he said after a while, folding his arms across his chest.

"School?" _So this was a school uniform I was wearing._

"Yes, a school. Of Witchcraft and Wizardry", my opponent replied, rolling his eyes in growing annoyance.

I stared up at him in disbelief. "Witchcraft? Wizardry?"

"By Merlin, did you fall on your head?", the boy blurted out, his arms falling to his side again, as he stared down on me, clearly thinking I was either mentally ill or completely stupid.

But I was neither, I just couldn't remember anything!

"I don't know what happened, okay? And I really don't know anything but… but that I am here in this… room… and everything seems quite familiar but it really isn't!", I yelled in utter frustration, pulling my knees to my chest, looking around again.

"It _seems_ familiar?", he replied in an unusually quiet tone. "What? You've been hit by a Memory Charm?"

"A what?", I replied, confusion deafening my senses.

"Memory Charm? Hex? Spell? Magic? You know, what wizards and witches do?", he said as if he was talking to a really dumb child.

"_Magic_?"

"For Merlin's sake, yes, magic, this school teaches magic, how to use _this_", he added as he pulled out a long, thin piece of wood out of the pocket of his robe. "A wand", he explained, sounding obviously annoyed now, as I stared at the thing in his hand. "Alright, you do seem to have been hit by something."

"But… how? And –", I broke off, lowering my gaze, staring at my shoes.

I didn't know anything. Everything seemed familiar but nothing was for sure. Where was I? Who was I? Oh my, I didn't even know who I was. _I've lost my memory._ That was when the tears came.

"Hey, stop doing that!", I heard a rather distant voice say.

I sobbed repeatedly, quickly wiping away the tears before I looked up, seeing my opponent stare at me with a slightly milder expression, his wand – as he had called it – clutched in his fist.

"What should I do?", I cried, my voice a notch too high for my liking.

"Calm down, will you? Tears will take you nowhere!", he said, his voice as stern as his expression.

"But –"

"No, listen to me: I will now bring you out of here into the Hospital Wing, and there, someone will take care of you –" I was almost sure that he wanted to add: _'- so I don't have to cope with you anymore!'_

I then nodded at him and clumsily got to my feet, straightening my skirt and sweater. I once again took a glance around as I noticed the enormous statue behind me. As the centrepiece of the long room, right at the end of the causeway framed by those huge pillars, the head of an old man with long hair and beard – that, in its flowing, resembled thousands of moving snakes – was staring down at everyone standing beneath. I cautiously took a step back, awed by the weird stone formation.

"Who is that?", I asked, throwing a glance over my shoulder at the boy standing by one of the pillars.

"That is Salazar Slytherin", he said in a proud voice, while replying my gaze with a stare that certainly meant to say: _'How dare you to not recognize him!'_

"Who was he?"

"He was the greatest sorcerer in the world!", my question was answered by yet another proud tone. Then the topic was dropped.

As I turned around to face the boy opposite me, still towering over me by at least one head, I noticed that his glare shot over me right into the stony eyes of the wizard's statue, a confident flicker in those dark pools, a small, satisfied smirk on his lips. I raised my eyebrow at the sight of it.

He then lowered his head, for a moment staring down at the dark stone floor beneath him. I could actually hear him exhale. As I cleared my throat, he quickly looked up again, meeting my puzzled gaze with an obviously irritated one.

"Come on, then, let's get you out of here", he said, his voice ice-cold again.

I followed him slowly as he turned around, walking along the aisle between the pillars towards the other end of the large room. We reached a rustic looking ladder leading up into another, way smaller tunnel. It was then that he stopped in his tracks. I came to a halt right behind him as he turned around quickly, eyeing me suspiciously. I replied his gaze with a frown.

"What is it?", I asked.

"You must not see this", he said, more to himself.

"See what?"

"The way to –", he hesitated, before he demanded in a rising voice, that actually made me flinch: "Cover your eyes!"

"What?"

"Or… no, I've got a better idea", he said, again more talking to himself than to me. He then raised the wand he was still holding in his hand, pointing it directly at my face.

Even though I couldn't imagine how a small piece of wood could cause actual damage or anything else in that matter, I was still afraid he might poke me in the eye with it. Backing away from him, I stared from the tip of the wood into his pale face.

"Just hold still!", he said, before he muttered something I couldn't understand, raising his wand even closer to my eyes.

I swallowed hard, my eyes widening, as a small flash of light erupted from the tip of the wand. Then there was darkness. I gasped in shock, my hands flying up to my face, until I felt the tightly wrapped blindfold around my head. _And I thought he blinded me! Well, he did but not in the permanent way._

"Why did you blindfold me?", I asked, trying to remain calm, moving uneasy from one foot to another as I stood in utter darkness.

"You are not supposed to be here", he told me. "So you are not supposed to see the way out either."

"The way out of what? What is this room anyway?"

"I am not allowed to tell you", he said, before I felt his hands upon my shoulders, directing me forwards.

I blindly stretched out my arms to feel around for anything coming closer, as my fingers touched rusty pipes. _The ladder_, I remembered. _The ladder leading up into the other tunnel._

"Climb up", I heard him say, his voice extraordinarily close to my ear, so close I could actually feel his breath on my skin. That was when another jolt of familiarity hit me. Yet I couldn't declare this feeling, as I felt his cold hands running over mine, leading them to the steps of the ladder. I clumsily grasped the rusty metal, still feeling around. "Raise your foot", he told me. I did and then felt the lowest step underneath my shoe.

After that, it was quite easy to climb up the ladder, one foot there, one hand there, the other foot there, the other hand there. Yet as I reached the end of the ladder and no steps could be felt under my touch, I almost stumbled – if it wasn't for a hand supporting the small of my back. I felt the strangely familiar, yet completely unknown boy climbing up right behind me, his hands gently shoving me forwards.

"One last step", he said and I raised my foot and found it standing on solid ground again. A sigh escaped my throat as I pulled the other foot along with it. I waited for him to do the same, but he was already beside me again; I felt his arm next to mine. He then put his hand on my back again, shoving me forwards. "Go on."

I blindly stumbled forwards, my hands stretched in front of me. It would have been easier if he took away the blindfold. _As if I would tell someone about this room_. Unless –

He couldn't tell me about this room. And he was not going to. It obviously was a hidden room. A secret room, in this school called Hogwarts, no one seemed to know about. Except him. Who was he anyway?

As we walked further through this seemingly never-ending tunnel, while I felt around with my hands, stumbling through the dark, his footsteps echoing from the walls, his hand still resting on my back, I couldn't help myself but ask: "Who are you?"

I wasn't sure if he had heard me – for it took him a while to answer. "My name's Tom."

_Tom? Just Tom? Well, alright, that's a start_, I thought as he pushed me further, until we came to a sudden stop with him grabbing my lower arm.

"Wait here", he said and let go of me altogether, the noise of his footsteps growing weaker as he walked away from me. I actually hold my breath, hoping he wouldn't leave me in the darkness for too long. In the far distance I could hear very quiet hissing sounds, it sounded just like a snake. After the hissing sound died down, a rumble shook the room. Somewhere a door was opening.

As I felt his hand grab mine, I almost gasped, then realizing that I had been holding my breath the whole time. Exhaling loudly, I let myself being pulled forwards again. "Watch your step", he said, as he walked behind me again, pushing me forwards through a seemingly smaller gap. I raised my foot cautiously but couldn't help feeling the outline of a round door, as I stepped over its threshold. I assumed we were now in another room, larger than the tunnel before, as I heard our footsteps echo quieter from its walls.

"Are we there yet?", I asked, still walking quite clumsily beside him, feeling his hand loosely on my back as he guided me through the darkness.

"No", was all he said.

We walked a little longer until we came to a halt again; this time I accidentally walked into him as he suddenly stopped right in front of me. My hands felt around in wonder, but all I could feel was the fabric of his robes in front of me. I stopped in mid-air as he turned around all of a sudden, my fingers accidentally brushing over the badge on the front of his robes.

"We have to go up now", he said, stiffening in front of me, as I slowly lowered my hands from his robes.

"Up where?", I asked, but my question remained unanswered.

I just felt myself being pushed forwards, two hands on my shoulders, guiding me towards a wooden banister. "Hold onto that banister", I was told before I felt him push past me, walking ahead. "And follow me", he added, his voice already sounding far away.

I quickly grabbed the banister and followed its way – until I bumped my toe against a stone step, pain rushing through my nerves immediately. _A staircase_. I numbly raised my foot, still hanging onto the banister, slowly ascending, feeling for every step with my not bumped foot. I climbed bit by bit, following the spiral staircase into nothingness as it seemed.

It was then I realized that I couldn't hear his footsteps any longer.

As panic rose inside me, I clung onto the banister, my voice an only shriek: "Tom!"

His name echoed from the walls, ringing in my ears. Another flash of familiarity rushed through my veins, but just as it was about to reach my head, maybe revealing snippets of lost memories, I felt a cold hand taking hold of my wrist. I gasped as his icy fingers ran over my skin, yet at the same time felt relief as he pulled me into a niche several steps further.

"Are we there yet?"

"Are you always that annoying?", he replied in a hushed voice.

"I was just asking…"

"And the answer is no! Hold on, will you?", he snapped.

I remained silent for the rest of the walk, I wasn't even complaining about how his tight grip cut off the circulation of my wrist, I just followed him through the dark, hoping that at the end he would take off the blindfold, not only letting me see again, but maybe also giving me answers to whatever question was still lingering on my mind.

We then finally reached what seemed to be the other side of a portrait; its surface rough as the fingers of my free hand brushed over it. I heard a quiet screeching sound as he pushed against the portrait. "Wait here", I heard him say, his voice a mere whisper. He then let go my wrist – whose skin I immediately caressed with my other hand – and walked ahead. I heard him step over something onto hard stone floor, where he remained.

"Come on", he hissed and I felt around for something to grab, until I noticed his hand right in front of me. I took it, my fingers buried within his, the coldness of his touch making me shiver. He then pulled me through what appeared to be a small gap in the wall, seemingly hidden by a painting on the wall of the other side. Just as I emerged from the hidden passage, the frame of the painting closed before it again.

My hand was still in his, as Tom dragged me after him, walking quickly forwards, taking several turns and then stopping right in the middle of what seemed to be a large hallway. It was then I heard him mutter something – before I suddenly looked straight into his dark eyes.

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_**A/N**: Chapter 1.1.  
Part two of Chapter 1 will come as quickly as you can change the letters of Tom Riddle's name into Voldemort's xD _

_Please review and tell me what you think thus far! _


	3. Tom And The Ghost Named Ginny

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**Unfinished Business**

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_My hand was still in his, as Tom dragged me after him, walking quickly forwards, taking several turns and then stopping right in the middle of what seemed to be a large hallway. It was then I heard him mutter something – before I suddenly looked straight into his dark eyes._

******Chapter 1.2 **

A small gasp emerged from my throat, as I stared at him, blinking into the sudden brightness. He was just lowering his wand, both his hands then vanishing inside his pockets, his jaw set, his expression unreadable.

I slowly broke from his stare and looked around. I was indeed standing in a hallway that was framed by countless paintings; portraits of people and landscape and –

A sudden movement caught me off guard. I looked closer at the nearest portrait – when it suddenly began to move, the knight inside it addressing me with a squeaky voice: "What are you looking at?"

I gaped at the portrait in shock before my gaze fell back on the tall figure beside me. Tom didn't even roll his eyes but just nodded. "Magic", was all he said in his icy, delicate voice.

I frowned, looking around again. All the portraits were moving, walking within their frames, some even leaving theirs, appearing in the one next to it. A heavy weight rushed down on my head; I felt so overwhelmed by what Tom had called magic, that I couldn't help but collapse against the nearest wall, my back flat against the stone. My breath escaped in quick puffs, my heart jumping against my chest.

"You'll get used to it", he said.

I looked up at him but before I could meet his gaze, he turned around again, looking along the hallway. _This was too much._ I didn't know where I was, _who_ I was, I didn't know anything about the world I woke up in. Frustration welled up inside me.

"Oh don't start again!", I heard a snarl beside me, as Tom turned around again, staring at me out of dark, irritated eyes.

"I'm sorry, okay? I didn't choose to be here…", I murmured, looking down again.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that", he replied. As I looked at him puzzled, he pointed at the emblem on my chest. "You obviously belong here."

"I do, do I?", I said, brushing over the crest with my index finger absentmindedly. _Why else was I wearing this uniform? So if, no, _when_ I am part of this school, I am seemingly a –_

I hesitated, breaking off my train of thought, looking around again, until I met Tom's gaze – who, to my utter surprise, was studying me like an open book.

"I'm a witch, right?", I muttered, more to myself than to him, yet he nodded nevertheless. "I can do magic as well…"

"Supposedly."

I just stared at him, still caught in confusion.

"I can't help you with that", he said as if he read my mind. "You have to find out yourself. I was just willing to take you to the Hospital Wing. So, turn around, go up the stairs and there you are: the Hospital Wing", he said and pointed past me towards a wide staircase.

"And what do I do in there?", I asked, nodding towards the double doors at the end of the stairs.

"Ask for help, tell the nurse you've lost your memory, whatever", he replied with a shrug.

My pleading, deeply desperate look seemed to actually work as he shook his head in disbelief, before he walked past me up the stairs, his robes billowing behind him. I quickly leapt forwards to follow him. At the top of the stairs he stopped, pulling open the large wooden doors to a large room that was framed by long rows of hospital beds. I looked around but couldn't see anyone inside.

As if materializing out of thin air, a nurse suddenly walked up to us, looking at Tom in wonder.

"Mr Riddle, is everything alright?", she asked.

Tom nodded and pointed towards me. "_She_ apparently isn't."

The nurse looked at the spot he was pointing to – yet she seemed to look right through me. A confused look wrinkled her old face.

"Who isn't, dear?"

Tom was visibly taken aback, as he stared from the nurse towards me. I just shrugged, equally confused. _She couldn't see me? Why couldn't she see me? Tom saw me. Why couldn't she? Was I –_

"I'm right here, Ma'am", I said, turning my head to meet her gaze – but again she was looking past me, _through_ me.

"You can't … see her?", Tom asked, his voice unusually flat and quiet.

The nurse watched him with rising concern. "Are you sure you're feeling alright, Mr Riddle?"

Tom just stared at her, disbelief plastered all over his pale face. I stood beside him, suddenly feeling just like I was to the nurse: invisible. I stared at my hands, turning them in the dim light; I raised them to my face and ran my fingers over my skin. I felt warm, I felt… alive. _I couldn't be dead. I couldn't be a ghost. But why couldn't she see me? And why could Tom?_

I then decided to take a step forwards and gently poked the nurse's shoulder, acknowledging that I was right here. But as my finger normally would have stopped as it touched the white uniform, it didn't. It went right through her. I waved my entire hand at the nurse, but again; my fingers just ran through her as if she was a ghost herself.

I backed away in terror, staring at my hands, before I looked up at Tom who surprisingly glanced back at me, having witnessed what just had happened.

"Would you excuse me, Ma'am?", he then told the nurse, who released us nodding, watching him with a frown on her face. Tom quickly turned around and – as he did so – grabbed my wrist to pull me down the stairs. We hurriedly walked through the hallway until we reached a left turn. He abruptly dragged me into the other hallway, and with a force, pinned me to the wall, his arms resting beside me, his angry stare boring into my eyes.

I gasped as he hissed viciously, stressing every word forcefully: "Who _are_ you?"

I looked up at him in utter shock, feeling my legs tremble as he moved threateningly closer to me. My heart raced against my ribcage, fear swelling inside. Stammering, a lump forming inside my throat, I replied: "I – I really don't … don't kn-know." As his jaw clenched noticeably, his eyes narrowing even more, I actually was on the verge of crying.

As quickly as he had pinned me to the wall, he was backing up again, shaking his head in irritation, looking away from me, his breath escaping him in forced control. I remained standing pressed against the wall, my entire body shaking because of his outburst. I blinked away the urge to cry, trying to calm down again.

"I'm sorry", I then heard him say in a very low voice, so that I had actual trouble to understand him.

That made me back away from the wall. I slowly walked towards him, my hands ringing with each other in front of me. "I am sorry too…", I whispered. "I must be a pain in the –"

He slowly turned around, his sudden movement making me break off. His eyes stared at me yet there was no sign of anger or annoyance or frustration. There was nothing. His face was a pale mask.

"Just get away from me", he said through clenched teeth, eyeing me coldly.

He then turned around and broke into a quick walk, as I stood in the middle of the hallway, paralysed by his sudden departure. With him gone, I realized that everything around me was foreign and unknown and with all those moving portraits slightly eerie. Even though I knew I had never heard of someone called Tom Riddle, I still felt that he – of all those unfamiliar things surrounding me – was the only one that might help me – although he didn't seem to be eager to do so.

As I watched him walk along the hallway away from me, I felt my heart sink. The only possible help – and he was leaving me here. It was then that the fear of loneliness and panic grew stronger, kicking everything else out. With a jolt running through my system, as I witnessed him walking around a corner out of sight, I jumped forwards, rushing after him.

"Wait!", I cried with my voice echoing from the walls.

I caught him several hallways later, just as he was about to descend another staircase. He didn't even turn around, he just stood on the top step, staring ahead. As I approached him, panting heavily, he slowly turned his head towards me, his expression unreadable.

"What?", he said with his jaw set.

"I… I need your help", I breathed, holding my side as I did so.

He eyed me with his eyes narrowed. "Didn't you understand me back there?"

"Huh?"

"I told you to get away from me!"

"I know, I – I heard you, but – but I really, _really_ need your help…"

"Why?"

"Because you are the only one I know, sort of", I tried to explain.

"Why –", he repeated, stressing the word as much as possible, before he added: "– should I help you?"

I glared up at him, swallowing hard. "Because… you are… nice?", I tried, actually smiling at him in a pleading manner.

He tilted his head at me. "Believe me, I might be a lot, but I am definitely not _nice_", he said through clenched teeth.

"Then… be not nice, but please help me!"

"You are some stubborn little girl, I'll give you that", he said after a while, looking me over. I merely watched him. "Are you stubborn enough to tell me how I could possibly help you?"

That caught me a little off guard. "Well, um, you could show me around so I can maybe find somebody else to help me."

"Show you around?", he asked with a raised eyebrow. "I am not a guide."

"But you know this… place", I said, waving my arms around, trying hard to fight back my frustration.

"So what? Just because I was stupid enough to meet you at first, doesn't give me the task to help you around! I will _not_ help you, understand?"

His ice-cold voice made me shiver, his glare sending daggers at me. I swallowed the rising panic, my hands actually clenching to fists at my side.

"Why are you so mean to me?", I asked, ignoring the rising fear of his fuming glare.

"Do you always take everything so personally?"

"So you are _always_ an arrogant miscreant?", I asked without knowing how those words could have escaped my mouth.

Tom was equally surprised. "An arrogant _miscreant_?", he echoed, his voice dangerously quiet.

I just nodded, trying to hide my anxiety of his reaction.

"You do think that, don't you?", he said, tilting his head.

"Well –", I began, unable to stand his glare anymore. To my utter horror he took a step towards me, towering me viciously, his arms crossed over his chest. He looked down at me with his eyes narrowed, his brow furrowed – and his lips curling up into a half-heartedly smirk. _He was actually smirking at me?_

"Do think that, I don't care", he then said. "I am not the one being lost without any useful memories here."

That made my jaw drop. As I gaped up at him, I realized that he was right. _I was lost. Oh I hated to be lost and depend on somebody else! _I then watched in shock how he moved away from me, twitching his eyebrows, before he turned around and descended down the stairs. I wanted to hold him back, when I felt utter defeat rise inside me. I merely looked after him as he walked more and more out of reach and sight.

Just as he reached another landing, walking towards a hallway leading out of sight, I jumped forwards. "Okay! I'm _sorry_!", I yelled down the stairs, quickly leaping forwards. "You are not an –"

That was all I could say – before my feet literally lost their grip. First I stumbled, desperately holding onto the banister, then I slipped – and to my utter bewilderment – not _down_ the _steps_, but _through_ the _staircase_. It was as if everything around me was withering, and I was literally fading into oblivion. A scream was on the verge to break free as I fell hopelessly through several staircases, with no end in sight.

I struggled hard, trying to get hold of anything on my way down. Eventually I closed my eyes, expecting the worst – as I came to a sudden stop, not crashing into the ground, but hovering in mid-air. I opened my eyes slowly as I felt myself being lifted gently to the ground. My feet touched solid ground again and before I knew it, I fell to my knees in sheer relief. Breathing hard, I then looked up and around.

"From now on, you better stop bothering me", Tom Riddle was saying as I met his semi-amused glance. "I'm really tired of helping you all day long!"

I couldn't help but smile up at him, as he pocketed his wand.

"Thank –", I began as I got to my feet again.

"Stop it, will you? I'll help you one more time before I hope to never ever see you again, are we clear?"

I nodded and wondered how he wanted to help me next. As he walked past me deeper into the hallway, I followed him quickly. After a while we reached what looked like a huge library with bookshelves framing every wall and every aisle of desks and chairs. He quickly walked past some students sitting at a desk near the entrance. I noticed some of them look after Tom as he walked by, muttering under their breaths as they did so.

Ignoring their whispers – and the fact that they didn't seem to notice me – I followed Tom into another aisle, where he was already rummaging through the shelf. He then got out a rather thick, old looking book that he shoved into my hands. It read 'Hogwarts: A History'. Clutching the book I then followed him into yet another aisle where he scanned the rows of books with his index finger. As he found the one he was looking for, he quickly pulled it out and put it on top of the other book I was carrying. This one read 'Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling'.

While I was staring at the books in my hands, Tom had already moved into another aisle. I ran after him just in time as he pulled another book out of the shelf, this one entitled: _'_Powers You Never Knew You Had and What To Do With Them Now You've Wised Up'. I raised an eyebrow before I threw a glance at Tom, who merely stood in front of me, eyeing me.

"Read those", was all he said.

I looked down at the three very… weighty books in my hands. Read _those_? _That might take days!_ I then looked up at him in confusion.

"Read!", he repeated, before walking past me.

"Wait!", I called after him, quickly following him, the books clutched to my chest.

He couldn't care less and just walked along the main aisle towards the exit, his robes flapping behind him. As he passed the table of the students who had whispered about him, he just throw them a short glance, causing them to bite their tongues immediately. I then watched how he exited the library, walking out of sight.

_Follow him_, a voice inside me pushed. _You'll loose him if you don't_.

But I didn't want to be an annoyance…

_A little late for that_, the voice replied.

And just as I headed for the exit as well, something hit me like an invisible jolt of lightning. I clung onto the books as a name flashed through my silent mind. Someone was calling a name, preferably _my_ name.

_Ginny!_

It disappeared as quickly as it had come. Panting slightly, I looked around, but nobody had seen my inner attack. That was to say, nobody had noticed me altogether. They looked right through me. I turned around to leave, as suddenly a student came towards me, apparently eager to enter the library. I wanted to make way – but too late. The impact was about to come –

Even though it didn't!

My eyes widened as I witnessed how the student walked right _through_ me.

_Nice, now they don't just _see_ through me, no, they _walk_ through me!_

I gasped as my eyes followed the student into the library. He didn't seem to have felt anything. Another wave of confusion rushed over me, before I noticed the weight of the books in my arms again. I quickly glanced down at them, clutched against my chest. _Why couldn't they at least see the books?_, I wondered. _Maybe because I touched them?_

Shaking my head as a headache crept up to my temples, I then left the library, looking for the only person who could see me. And therefore help me. No matter how, _I myself didn't know what he could do_, but the mere thought of someone trying to help made me leap forwards.

I ran up and down the school, an enormous castle as it seemed, with thousands of hallways, billions of staircases, hundreds of doors with countless rooms behind them, and absolutely no place where someone named Tom Riddle could have been found. It was sheer coincidence as I reached a rather large hall somewhere on the ground floors – and actually saw him stand in the doorway leading into another large hall – that, as far as I could see, was equipped with several long tables at which countless students sat.

As I saw that he wasn't alone, I crouched behind the banister near the end of the stairs. A rather small black-haired girl was standing beside him, looking up at him with her eyelashes whizzing. He was actually grinning down at her. _The odds! _Waiting patiently – at least trying to – I leant against the banister and looked around the hall, the books on my lap.

Looking up to the giant windows I noticed that it must have been around dinner time, hence the students sitting at those tables, eating and drinking. Watching them eat rather delicious looking food, I thought I would feel hunger rise inside me. Yet there was nothing. _Maybe I've eaten before I fell asleep in that weird room…_

Sitting on the steps of the marble staircase, I suddenly became aware of what was going on. What happened with me. How my life had changed. I couldn't remember anything, seemingly I was a ghost that could only be seen by one person, and apparently I had to watch my steps from now on. I didn't know what happened to me to bring me into such a situation, but I was fairly aware of it as being very, very odd.

_Ginny!_

The voice that had called my name echoed in my head. _My name_. At least I thought it was my name. It had sounded urgent, shocked and desperate. What had happened that someone was calling a name in such a manner?

_Did I die?_

But I wasn't dead. Tom said so. But maybe he tended to see ghosts and communicate with them, who knew? But ghosts couldn't touch human beings and they certainly wouldn't hold onto several heavy books. And –

_Hang on. _

This portrait in the hallway by the Hospital Wing could see me!

Why could a portrait see me when nobody else – except Tom – could?

As I looked around, eager to find another portrait that might see me, I notice that Tom wasn't standing at the door anymore. Neither did the black-haired girl. _Oh no. I've lost him again!_ I jumped up in shock, leaping forwards, my eyes still fixed on the door – when I bumped into something solid, the books only helping to knock whatever was in the way over more.

A growl emerged from the end of the stairs as I stumbled back into the banister. I looked down – and saw someone sitting on the stone floor, holding his back, his face twitched in anger and pain.

"How I wish to see through you just like everybody else", an ice-cold voice rang up to me, before Tom Riddle looked up into my eyes with his jaw clenched.

"Oh my, I am _sorry_!", I blurted out and hastily leapt forwards to help him up, even though he pushed away my hand and got to his feet all by himself, still glaring at me.

"I might be the only one who can see you, but you should still watch where you're going!"

"I know, I'm –"

"Leave it", he said and pushed past me.

"Wait! I've been looking for you!", I yelled after him.

He stopped in his tracks and slowly turned around. "My, am I glad you finally found me", he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Well, you might think in a castle as big as this –"

"What do you want?", he interrupted me, impatiently.

"My name's Ginny", I merely said.

He stared at me, one eyebrow raised, locking eyes with me. "Well, alright."

"That means I remembered it!" _I couldn't believe he didn't share my enthusiasm._

"Good for you", he replied.

"But –"

"That means your memory is coming back – so you don't need to bother me anymore", he said and turned around again.

I glared at his back for a while. "But… what should I do until it fully comes back?"

"How should I know?", he said over his shoulder, one hand resting on the banister.

"I – I don't know where to go, Tom", I finally admitted, my voice a nick too whiney for my taste.

He turned around very slowly, eyeing me indifferently. "What do you expect me to do about that?"

"Tell me where I should go", I suggested.

"Did you read the books I gave you?"

"Um, oh, no, not yet", I said, looking down at the books clutched in my hands.

"Read them. If you have any more questions, we'll talk again."

"But –"

He just shook his head and turned around again. "Good night, Ginny."

And there I stood, in the middle of this marble staircase, not knowing where to turn, not knowing what to expect of the next hours. My life was empty, there was no past, no future – and I watched the only person go who could have been helpful to me in the present.

* * *

**__****A/N**: _Part 2 of Chapter 1._

_So it's already leading into a certain direction, I hope I can form my thoughts into the right words. xD_

_I also hope I won't create another cliche. I know many Ginny/Tom fics are just the same, and one reason I had to write this, is because I haven't found a single fanfiction that wasn't about kidnapping, posession and other mature topics, if you know what I mean. I just don't see their relationship like that. There's more to it._

_That's why I wanted to give it a try myself. Hopefully my version of Tom stays true to the books and yet has a little notch of my own imagination. Even though I am fascinated by his dark character, I don't think that he's purely evil. He is a tragic character and that's what I want to present here._

_Obviously in later chapters xD _

_So thank you everyone for reading and reviewing. I appreciate every single comment. Just write something! Thanks!_

**__****Disclaimer**: _Neither Ginny Weasley nor Tom Riddle (unfortunately) belong to me._

_**EDIT**:  
Hey Bianca! So glad to see you reviewing here as well!! Thank youu for that xDD  
And of course I'll try to update every single _mentioned _story xD  
_


	4. Conclusions And Confusion

* * *

**Unfinished Business**

* * *

**Chapter 2.1**

After having watched Tom Riddle disappear up several stairs, I gave in eventually, sitting down on the stairs with a huge sigh emerging from my lips. I stared down at the three weighty books in my lap and shook my head silently before I began to open the book on top: Hogwarts: A History.

Several hours later, many students had passed me by (or through) and even the light around me was dimmer than before, I slammed the book shut with a thud.

_Alright_. So I knew everything about the history of this castle. About its four founders and how one of them left the school due to an argument about whether or not to fill the school with muggle-borns. Muggle-borns, apparently that was a term for wizards and witches without magical parents.

I wondered if my parents could do magic… _My parents_. I couldn't remember anything about them. Did I love them? Did they love me? What if they were out there, looking for me?

I closed my eyes for a second and concentrated on what I have read before, shutting every other thought out. So, _Hogwarts_; one of the Founders, a name that I had heard escaping Tom Riddle's mouth, was a very foul one. He believed that only children of pureblood families should be allowed in Hogwarts. Before he had left the school, it was said, that he built a chamber deep into the ground of the castle, in which he hid a monster that would rid the school of everyone muggle-born.

_A chamber_. Just like the room I woke up in. _The Chamber of Secrets_.

A term that, as my eyes had flown over the words, had risen a feeling of familiarity inside me. _I've heard about it before. But where? And when? And why?_

As I put together the pieces of the puzzle, a question popped into my head. The Chamber of Secrets. Salazar Slytherin. I had read in the book that he proclaimed for his true heir to return to Hogwarts to use this Chamber to get rid of those who didn't belong here. No one else would be able to find said Chamber. But his heir. The Heir of Slytherin. So –

A small gasp escaped my throat.

_Wait a second_. That couldn't possibly mean that Tom Riddle, the person I met as I woke up in this room that probably was the Chamber of Secrets for it had this huge statue of Salazar Slytherin, was the Heir of Slytherin?

"_Believe me, I might be a lot, but I am definitely not _nice_!", _he had said

Was he the one to open this Chamber and set free the monster within?

I looked up at the ceiling, my eyes running thoughtlessly over the high walls of the Entrance Hall. Confusion rushed over me once again, leaving me restless. Whatever questions I might have, there was no one able to answer them other than Tom Riddle. The one I just suspected of being the heir of evil Slytherin. Did I have a choice but to go to him and ask him about it? Would he say, _"Why, of course I am the heir!"_ or would he stare at me and try to –

Was he maybe even able to kill?

After having read about Salazar Slytherin and remembering the short amount of time I had spent with Tom Riddle, there was at least a medium sized lump in my throat, telling me; _Yes, he certainly was_. I had felt the anger and irritation inside him, not just against me, but in general. There was something lurking inside him, that might very well be able to do something very awful.

As night fell around me, I pressed the books against my chest and got up, walking towards the large doors leading into the Great Hall. There were still several candles floating in mid-air. Sitting down at one of the four long tables, right underneath a couple of hovering candles, I tried to get rid of the thoughts that kept me restless, by beginning to read the other two books about the Magical Theory and the Powers that I might have inside me.

Countless hours later, in which I to my utter surprise didn't feel at all sleepy, both books lay read beside me while my eyes darted around the Great Hall. It must have been a little after midnight as the enchanted ceiling showed a pitch black sky only sometimes splattered with pale shining stars. I sighed deeply, trying to understand all the new knowledge I absorbed in the past hours.

I knew about Hogwarts, about magic and all those things around it. I knew about the Magical world and the Muggle world, I knew about witches and wizards and all those things they could do – and yet it all felt as if I had read books full of fiction and worlds I couldn't believe were real. I felt for sure that I couldn't do any of those things I have read about.

But then _why_ was I here? In this school of Witchcraft and Wizardry, wearing a school uniform? I didn't belong here. _Something was definitely wrong_. Not just the fact that only one person could see me, no, everything felt too odd to be true. Leaning back on the bench I was sitting on, I felt as if a veil of weightless darkness wrapped itself around me, tearing me asunder. I closed my eyes and felt how the world around me grew invisible and numb.

How I literally hovered in mid-air, before I fell lightly through the floor. This time, however, it didn't feel as if I would fall and fall and inevitably hit the ground very hard, it just felt as if I rushed through the air, my body spinning, the black surroundings along with it and then, all of a sudden, I landed on my feet again, standing in the middle of a dimly lit corridor. I looked around in ever-growing confusion, realizing that I didn't actually fall _through_ the floor into deeper levels of the castle, but _up_ onto a higher landing, as I found out looking around, noticing the flights of stairs around me.

_Something was definitely odd._

And I felt even weirder as I then saw a black-haired girl emerging from a small gap in the wall that had revealed itself after a large portrait had swung open. She looked strangely familiar. _Yes_, it then stroke me, _that was the girl Tom Riddle had been talking to_. She quickly looked around, completely unaware of my presence, and then rushed along the corridor down the steps, vanishing in the dimness.

_What had she been doing here? At this late hour?_

I had read in Hogwarts: A History that it was strictly forbidden to walk the castle after curfew. _And where had she been coming from anyway?_ I slowly turned around towards the portrait that had closed itself in front of the gap once more, remaining motionless, even the wizard with the pointy hat and large nose in it didn't move an inch as I approached it. The only sounds coming from the portrait were quiet snores.

Curiosity made me move closer until my hands gently ran along the frame which felt solid under my fingertips. Too solid to move through. A little disappointed that my see-through appearance wouldn't make me walk through solid walls whenever I wished for it, and definitely at the point of utter hopelessness, I leant against the wall beside the portrait, looking around as to why I have been landing on this very hallway.

The moment I came to think about the why, I felt as if some invisible force pushed me closer to the wall – which suddenly seemed to disappear. As I stumbled backwards – right through the solidness I had condemned before – I didn't even have the time to think. It all happened so fast and when I looked up, landing roughly on my behind, I saw a thick, very solid looking wall in front of me.

Furrowing my forehead, I got to my feet and turned around – to find myself in a rather large room, with floor-to-ceiling windows at one side and a huge fireplace on the other, with couches and armchairs in the middle and tables and chairs at the unoccupied walls between window and fireplace. Walking slowly towards the centre of the room, I noticed two staircases near the fireplace, one leading up, one leading down. A little deafened by the silence of the room, I then decided to go down the stairs, a small voice in my head telling me to explore wherever I might be.

I slowly descended until I reached a small landing with two doors. Turning to the left, I almost silently opened it and found myself looking at a small bathroom with a round mirror and a sink facing two booths on the other side, supposedly occupied with either a shower or a toilet or both. Only having to take one step into the room, I couldn't help but throw a glance at the mirror that was partly steamy. Reaching up, my left palm ran along the wet glass until I could see my pale face staring back at me.

I had halfway expected to have no reflection, but as I saw the girl in the mirror do the same things I did, a rush of relief ran through my veins. _I was not entirely see-through, at least not for myself._ I examined my face, my red hair, the freckles on my nose, the sadly unfamiliar brown eyes. It still felt as if I looked at somebody else. As I lowered my gaze for just a second, before I glared back at me, my reflection had changed slightly. My head was suddenly not the only one in the mirror.

I turned around in a split-second as I met two widened eyes that belonged to –

As my eyes wandered over my opponent, I couldn't help but feel myself blush heavily.

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?", came the irritated, loud and definitely surprised voice of Tom Riddle, whose hands were tightly closed around the ends of a towel that he had wrapped around his lower body, as he stood in the doorway of one of the booths.

I swallowed hard as I tried to concentrate on his jaw-clenched face rather than his naked chest. "Um, I, well –", I began stammering before I turned around quickly, my eyes fixed on a rather dull looking wall. "I, I actually don't know. I –"

"Get out!", he said through clenched teeth, as I heard his naked feet tap along the tiles of the bathroom. "NOW!"

I quickly stumbled forwards, wanting nothing more than to leave very, very quickly. As soon as I passed the door, it was already closing behind me with a loud bang. I closed my eyes and tried to calm my heart, by leaning casually against the nearest wall. _Why did I have to go in there in the first place? Why did this stupid voice inside of me keep pushing me forwards? Why?_

Several moments later, I heard the bathroom door open again. Turning around very slowly, I saw Tom Riddle exiting the bathroom dressed in a dark green bathrobe, his black hair still wet, his jaw as clenched as usual, his eyes even darker than before. He threw me a rather rude gaze, before he walked past me towards the other door. Without doing or saying anything else, he opened it, walked inside – and slammed it shut again.

Leaving me standing on the small landing, staring after him.

_Alright_. I would have been mad as well if someone would stalk me like this. Following me everywhere – even into the bathroom. _Wow, I really must be a pain in the –_

_Hang on_.

It was not _my_ fault he was the only one who could see me. If he really thought I was an annoyance, then why had he led me out of the Chamber of Secrets instead of leaving me there – to be eaten by the monster within? It was his fault I bonded with him the way I did! _He_ helped me in the first place! If he hadn't helped me, I would never have thought about following him! I would have never asked him to help me at all! _Your own fault, mister, that you are now haunted by me!_

With that new energy rising inside, I stormed forwards – not even bothering to open the door, but walk right through it. I entered another large room, occupied with a four-poster bed on one side, a closet on the other, a table and a chair in front of another floor-to-ceiling window. Just as I took another step inside the room, looking around, I saw him standing by his bed, with his back to the door, apparently buttoning his dark grey pyjama shirt.

"Listen –", I began, taking yet another step – before he cut me off by turning around so quickly, I thought his head moved faster than his body, staring at me with his eyes wide.

"GOD! Could you _announce _yourself?", he bellowed at me, his arms dropping to his side, his shirt only halfway buttoned. "I am so close to hex you, you know that?"

His anger hit me quite unexpected. How could he have forgotten that I was still here so quickly? Was he trying to deny that I existed? _Well, what would you do? Admitting that you're losing your mind?_

"I'm – I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to… burst in here like that", I then said, blinking repeatedly at his intense glare.

"What do you want?", he said, his voice unnaturally calm considering the rage in his eyes.

"I, well –"

"WHAT DO YOU _WANT_ FROM ME?", he then shouted again, his voice ringing in my ears.

"I DON'T _KNOW_!", I shouted back, tears welling up inside my eyes as I did so. "I don't know, I really don't _know_…", I repeated, my voice breaking, a lump forming inside my throat as I felt another wave of hopelessness wash over me.

"God, stop _doing_ that!", he hissed, before he turned around, facing his bed, his hands absentmindedly moving up to finish buttoning his shirt. "I can't stand this _weakness_!", he added, stressing the last word as if it was something poisonous.

"I'm sorry I'm bothering you", I said barely audible. "I can't help it…"

Closing my eyes for an instant, I tried to calm my nerves, shut out the confusion and focus on what was going on. Being here in this very room, was not a coincidence. I somehow flew from the Great Hall up to this landing. Where I was somehow meant to see the black-haired girl come out of the room with the fireplace. Where I somehow had the urge to follow the staircase down and enter the bathroom – to meet, once again, Tom Riddle.

_He_ was the key. Whatever I did, I always ended up in the same room or hallway. He was always there. Whatever happened to me, it seemed as if he was the only one able to – _what?_ Do something against it? Help me? Did he really – for he certainly wasn't aware of that.

But why did he play such a major role in this? I didn't even know him – but, _well_, I didn't know anything else around me either. _Why did I meet him? Why me? Why him? Why here? Why now? _The why part kept filling up my head as I opened my eyes again, just to see him stare at me. His expression was unreadable yet it was less angry and more confused than before.

"Why?", he then echoed what my mind was still yelling at me, his tone quiet and stern.

I looked at him for a moment. "I don't know why", I then said, my eyes moving across his pale face. "But –"

"But what?"

"But I… have the feeling that… we were meant to meet…"

* * *

_**A/N:** Alright. If you are now completely confused, don't worry. I'll upload the second part of chapter two immediately, I just had to split it up because it was getting too long. I know this is very confusing stuff and, yeah, it gets even worse in the next one. I'm trying to clear all the why's in the next chapter - but if you still have questions, don't hesitate and ask me._

_**Disclaimer:** Everything belonging to JKR belongs obviously not to me._

_Read and review. Thanks! (I'll answer every review in the next chapter!) _


	5. The Heir Is The Key

* * *

**Unfinished Business**

* * *

"_But I… have the feeling that… we were meant to meet…"_

**Chapter 2.2**

"What are you talking about?", he snapped, slowly sitting down on his bed, still eyeing me unblinkingly.

"I don't know, I just … this feeling comes back every now and then. Some things _feel_ familiar and… so do you. I don't know how, but it feels as if we had met before."

"That's impossible. I have no idea who you are."

"But then, why does it feel as if I know you?"

He just glared at me.

"Maybe we met in another life or something. _Maybe_ I really am dead and came back as a ghost to fulfil my last will, you know? My final quest before I can go… wherever dead ones go. _Maybe_ I have some unfinished business to deal with. And maybe, or let's say, _probably_, this unfinished business has something to do with… _you_."

My thoughts were spinning frantically inside my head. Those new conclusions whirled around with such a force, I actually felt weak in the knees. Tom, however, stared at me as if I indeed was a ghost. He looked even more shocked than he had as he were told by the nurse that she couldn't see me. His dark eyes gleamed in the dimness of the room, his lips parted slightly as if he wanted to say something, his forehead furrowed thoughtfully.

"You mean, I have some unfinished business with you?", he repeated after a while, his voice very quiet.

"Or vice versa."

"But… no. That's not possible. How should that be possible? I don't know you and you didn't even know about the world you were in several hours ago. This is stupid!", he added, his voice abruptly changing from thoughtful into disbelieving.

"But – but how do you explain all this? Why can you see me when no one else can? Why do I find you in this maze of hallways and staircases, no matter how well hidden you are? This has definitely something to do with you!"

He watched me for a second before he got up from his bed. Staring at me with his eyes slightly narrowed as if he tried to see through me, he then walked past me towards the door. I turned around to watch him, a confused look on my face. He opened the door, looked into the small corridor behind it and then back at me.

"Listen, whoever, _whatever_ you are, I really don't care about you or your problems or whatever else that sits inside your wicked mind. I really, _really_ don't want to have anything to do with you or your weird stories. I'd rather ignore you than have to tell myself that I'm losing my mind. I am not crazy, you, however, seem to be. So if you would please excuse me now, here is the door. Please don't ever come back here and don't ever bother me again!"

With that he pointed out of the room, his expression stern.

I glared at him as if he had just slapped me. _So that was it? But what now? What should I do now that the only one who could see me, didn't want to see me anymore?_ As I stepped forwards very slowly, I felt terribly lost. _There was nothing ahead of me. Nothing. _I watched him silently as I came face to face to him. He lowered his hand, his eyes boring into mine. A sudden jolt of weakness ran through my body and I quickly grabbed the doorframe for support. Before I could, however, reach the wooden door, my fingers almost unnoticeably touched Tom's hand – and then, all hell broke loose.

As if almost electrocuted, I pulled back my hand and felt a jerk in the middle of my body. My heart leapt against my ribs, my breath was stuck in my throat. The almost unperceived touch caused what I would later describe as some kind of stroke. My brain seemed to elapse, as several jolts of lightning flashed in front of my eyes.

In the mayhem within, I suddenly saw images flicker. Images of faces, first laughing, then crying, then screaming in agony. Faces that seemed familiar. There was also an image of a black book and words disappearing right after they were written down – to be replaced by words that appeared on a blank page. Then there were voices. Screaming, shouting, whispering. _Ginny!_ People screaming in pain, bodies falling to the ground, flashes of green light and red light, people in hoods, walls covered in blood.

And a thought. _This is the end_.

As soon as the images and noises had come, they disappeared again. As if pushed by an unseen force, I tumbled backwards, falling clumsily on my hands, before I, suddenly horror-struck, backed up from where I had hit the ground until my back met the closest wall. Panting I stared ahead, my eyes unfocused. Shaking my head vividly, I squeezed my eyes shut, my hands over my ears, also trying to shut out everything I had just seen.

But _what_ had I seen?

Those faces, were they… _family_? They looked so familiar, horribly familiar as they all, one by one, had fallen to the ground. And those screams. They still echoed through my head. Then this book. What was it? I recalled its leathery binding, its yellowed pages, the dis- and reappearing ink, and – _what was that on its back?_ Those golden letters? A name?

"Tom Marvolo Riddle…", I whispered into the nothingness in front of my eyes as I remembered the name on the back of the book.

"What?", the surprised voice made my surroundings rematerialize again.

As realization struck me, I gasped silently. Now it all made sense. _Well, not everything, but parts of it._ What I had seen where snippets from my life, a life I have lived before, my former life, before I woke up here. There was war and –

_Oh my god._ I really _was_ dead. I died in that war, seeing my family die with me, how everything turned black. But I didn't die completely, I was… my spirit, my soul, couldn't die, before –

_Yeah, before what?_ I tried hard to fight the confusion as I put image to image. This book. It belonged to… Tom Riddle. _The_ Tom Riddle that was standing in front of me. I had his book. In my former life. And now I am here with him. Here in…

The past.

Another flash of realization struck me. This was not my time. That was why I felt as if I didn't belong here. I was from… the _future_? I had died in the future to come back in the past? _But why?_ Just because I had a book that –

My brain jerked once more, making me wince heavily. The book. _A diary_. A diary that had belonged to Tom Marvolo Riddle. Before my eyes everything turned foggy again. Twisted images ran through my mind, a room, a desk, a quill, I saw myself writing in the diary.

_Dear Tom._

And I saw neat words appear on the blank pages. _Hello, Ginny_.

Then there was darkness and a voice whispering inside my head, urging me to do things I didn't know anything about. Places flew by, sinks, hallways, walls, statues… Voices. Whispering, ordering, hissing…

With a jolt I came back to my senses, my mind racing, my heart pumping against my ribcage. As my eyes darted around and rested on the person in front of me, I jumped to my feet with a power I didn't know I had – and pressed myself flat against the wall, staring partly frightened, partly fuming at my opponent.

_I _did_ know him_. I still didn't know exactly why and how, but the feeling I had as I recalled the images and noises was strong enough to tell me that I wasn't imagining those familiar flashes that kept rushing through me. It didn't matter that he didn't know me, more important was that I knew him. In the life I had lived before, in a totally different time period. Something had happened in the future. Something that, after I seemingly had died, brought me back here. Back to – _well_, there were still parts missing in the connection between those two … worlds, the then and the now, the future and the past.

_Future_.

"What year do we have?", I asked into the room, unable to focus on anything in front of me.

"What?", came the quick response, very irritated.

"What _year_ do we have?", I repeated, a little impatient.

"1944."

_Oh dear_. That was certainly not the year or time period I had been living in. That made it clear. I was – for some still unknown reason – brought back into the past. Just because –

"The diary", I muttered, blinking to focus on my opponent once again.

Tom Riddle stared back at me, semi-angry, semi-confused and utterly dismayed. "What?", he hissed with his eyes narrowed.

"The diary. _Your_ diary", I mused, still trying to fight the cloud of confusion from in front of my eyes as I watched him very closely.

"What are you talking about?"

"Did you own a diary? A black book with your name printed on its back, with golden letters?"

Tom's jaw dropped an inch as he stared at me. Then I saw a flash of recognition flicker inside his dark eyes.

"So you know about that?"

"Your point being?"

"I knew about that diary. I… had it."

"You… had it?", he asked, his eyebrows shooting up.

"Yes, it was mine… back then, from –"

"I have _absolutely_ no idea what you are talking about", Tom interrupted me with confusion growing on his handsome face.

"Look –", I began, trying to put in words what my mind gave me in sudden flashes of insight. "I owned your diary. I had it. I wrote in it. And… you answered me."

His forehead furrowed heavily, more confusion washing over him, yet there was still a very small spark in his eyes that told me that he might know more than he was willing to share.

"I guess it was a magical diary. With… a part of you… like, a memory, preserved within. Maybe that's why you can't remember me… because it wasn't you I've been writing too, but your … memory."

It became harder and harder to fight the confusion. And his puzzled expression wasn't helping.

"Back then, when I had this diary, I… there were things happening, I don't know what, but it felt… weird. And, well, all I know is that those things had to do with… the Chamber of Secrets."

As I mentioned the name of the chamber, I could almost feel Tom's irritation growing. He seemed to grow rigid right away, his whole body stiffening, his jaw clenching. His glare becoming even darker.

"That's why I felt strangely familiar with this large room I woke up in, the room you found me. Because I've been there before. In the Chamber of Secrets, built by Salazar Slytherin, opened only by his true heir…"

I paused, watching him closely. His face pale, he continued glaring at me, unblinkingly, his lips pressed together in a weak attempt to hide his annoyance.

"_You_ are the Heir of Slytherin", I then finished, my eyes fixed on his.

To my utter surprise, a small smile broke from his face, even though his eyes were still filled with black rage. "I still don't have any idea what you are talking about", he then said, his voice ice-cold.

I tilted my head. _Of course he wouldn't admit anything_! "Then why were you in that Chamber if only the heir had access to it?"

"Why were _you_ there?", he replied instead, watching me, the smile frozen on his face, making him look rather twisted.

I opened my mouth to answer – yet the moment I did, my mind went blank. _I didn't know._ I somehow knew that I was from the future, brought back to the past, because there were some connections between my life and Tom Riddle's as it seemed. The diary was the major association. So whatever happened in my past life concerning said diary, some still unknown force brought me back here after I had… _died_. The realization hit me hard as I thought about it.

So I was a ghost, a fragment of a former life, a piece of soul led back to a place and time where something was waiting to be resolved.

Before I could even think about it, my knees went weak, making me collapse to the floor with a quiet thump. There, sitting on my knees, my hands trembling in my lap, I looked up at Tom who still stared at me – even though the smile was wiped from his face.

"I don't know why…", I then whispered, my mind overturning. "But… I am here… because… I… _died_", I added the last word barely audible, closing my eyes as I did so. "I am _dead_… a ghost, whatever you might call it… the life I know… is over… and now I'm here… to…" Opening my eyes again, feeling tears well up inside, I stared up at Tom. "To… do something to justify my life."

The last conclusion had slipped right out of my mouth without having passed my mind. _To justify my life_? So I had a quest, a reason why I was back in 1944 instead of the time period I have lived in. There was something I needed to do. Dying had not been the end as it seemed. Someone or something had given me a second chance. To change something that had been wrong in my first life.

As I stared up at Tom, even more thoughts formed inside my head. Why did I see the diary in that weird fit I had? _His _diary? Why did I meet him? _Now I knew_.

He was _indeed_ the key. Whatever I had to change, it was about him. I had no idea why, but that was what the feeling inside my stomach tried to tell me. Urged me to realize. I was sent back to meet Tom Marvolo Riddle.

But I had to think about the why part later. As for now, I felt myself sink against the wall behind me, my eyelids heavy, my mind still rushing, my heart slowing down, as I fell into a soft and yet disturbing darkness.

And I learned that even ghosts can faint.

* * *

_**A/N:** Part two. I hope this settles the confusion at least a little bit. If not, I repeat, please ask me, I am here to clear your foggy minds if I have to!_

_So, what I missed in chapter 2 part 1, the reviews:_

_**Thank you everyone so much for reading and reviewing! Don't forget, you guys keep me writing. I'm doing this just for you! **_

_**Bianca**: Did I mention that I'm really glad you're reading this story too? Thank you so much for that!  
Irritated-Tom is quite cool, isn't he? xDD And I guess it will take several chapters from now to clear his irritation off his handsome face, ah well... we'll see xD  
He really makes you feel sorry him, doesn't he? Losing his mind and all? Yeah, poor, poor Tom xD  
LOL! OMG, I laughed so hard at the Tom-the-guide bit! I can imagine that too, would be soo hilarious xDD I'd love to see that hat though xD  
Hehe, true, about the only he can see her so she better watch her back: Maybe he'll come to think about that sooner or later, if he comes off his irritation to see the obvious xD I doubt that though, angry suits him, doesn't it?  
About that girl he's been grinning at, hehe, yeah, some little side conflict here, she'll come back in several chapters.  
And yeah, the slightly sweet moment, I wanted it to be sweet, so happy I succeeded. More of those might take a while though._

_So, again, thank you all for reading and reviewing! I appreciate every comment!_

_**Disclaimer**: I own nothing!_

_**Up next**: More confusion xDD But hopefully also more solutions. And you all know where this is really, eventually leading, apart from all the plot and the other information, right? I won't say, you all know that xD  
_

_Read and review please!_


	6. The Head Boy And The Lack Of Guilt

* * *

**Unfinished Business**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

There was a quiet scratching noise as I woke up again. Moving groggily on whatever I was lying, I tried to open my heavy eyelids, blinking rapidly as a sunbeam hit me straight in the eye. Still unaware of where I was, I sat up, wiping my eyes with a small yawn – before I focused on my surroundings.

I was sitting on a couch in a rather large room, stuffed with more couches, armchairs, tables, chairs, floor-to-ceiling windows and a fireplace. _Oh_. The room from which the two staircases led up and down. But how did I come here when I fainted in –

_Oh!_

As my eyes flew around the room I then found the source of the scratching noise.

Tom Riddle was standing with his back turned to me in front of a large board attached to the wall next to the fireplace, where notes and lists and other slips of paper were pinned to. Wearing his black school robes, he scribbled on a rather long parchment scroll, a white feather quill in his hand. After I watched him for a while, in which he was still completely unaware that I was there, I turned my head – noticing my shoes on the rug in front of the couch.

Standing neatly next to each other.

Frowning, I couldn't help but grin at the prospect of me fainting in Tom's room, then being carried into this room, and of Tom pulling off my shoes after lying me down here. That was too odd to be believable, but I still had had to get here somehow. Shaking my head slightly, ignoring the how, I glanced over at Tom's back. He was pausing in front of the board, reading as it seemed, the hand holding the quill tapping on his chin.

"What are you doing?", I then couldn't help myself but ask, causing him to turn around, looking very startled.

"Oh", he exclaimed, then calmed down immediately, his voice almost sounding bored, when he added: "You're awake." Looking me over for a second, he then turned back to the board.

"Apparently", I said, slipping into my shoes and slowly getting up, feeling as if being hit by a train.

"I didn't know ghosts can faint", he said casually, moving the quill over the parchment list again.

"Well, me neither", I agreed, slowly walking towards the large windows.

The sun was shining rather brightly, blinding me for an instance as I tried to look down the grounds that were covered in dazzlingly white snow. It was winter. _I had no idea. _I looked around the castle and its surroundings, my mouth slightly open, as I observed the landscape in awe. Sadly, nothing of it told me that I might have seen it before.

I turned away from the window with a quiet sigh, flattening my skirt as I did so, before I decided to walk closer to the ominous board on the wall that Tom was so busy staring at. I approached him quietly, looking over his shoulder to catch a glimpse at notes entitled "School Rules of Hogwarts", "Lost And Found", "Quidditch Team Training Timetable", "Organisations, Societies, Groups and Clubs of Hogwarts", and "Prefects of 1944". The latter was pinned right next to the long parchment list Tom was writing on. He then tapped the feathered back of the quill against his chin again, before he casually turned his head around – just as I moved around him to have a better look at the notice board. He grew rigid right away, his eyes widening.

"You should really learn to announce yourself!", he snapped and backed a step away from me, the hand holding the quill dropping to his side.

"Sorry", I just muttered, drawing more attention to the parchment he had been writing on. "What's that? A –" I squinted my eyes a little. "A prefect?"

"I don't see why this is any of your business!"

"Well, it would be easier for you to just tell me. I tend to be rather annoying", I shot him a small grin, before I fixed on the parchment again.

Out of the corner of my eye I could see him frown. "A prefect is a student who supervises the other students and maintain order and discipline within the school and the individual houses of Hogwarts", he explained in a rather bored voice.

"Are you a prefect?", I asked, scanning the list of names under the title of "Current Prefects".

"No", he merely said. "I am Head Boy."

"Head Boy?", I echoed, looking at him. "Sounds important."

"It is", he said, his boredom noticeably changing into arrogance. "The Head Girl and Boy are in charge of the Prefects and take care of every matter concerning student welfare."

I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

"And before you ask, I was about to arrange one of the monthly Prefect meetings here in the Head common room."

"Head common room?"

"You _do_ tend to be annoying", he replied instead, turning away from the board towards one of the tables on which a black bag was lying.

I followed him with my eyes fixed on the back of his head. "So the Head Girl and Boy have their own common room, then?" He began rummaging through the bag, his back still turned to me. "Well, I read about the four houses having their own common rooms, I thought this was one of them."

"It's not", Tom replied over his shoulder and with that the topic was dropped. He finally found what he was looking for and returned to the board with a rather thick looking notebook, from which he copied several lines in neat handwriting onto the parchment on the board.

"In which house are you?", I asked after a while of reading through some of the other notes.

"Do you really have to ask?", he replied, not looking at me.

I watched his stern profile closely, how his dark eyes darted back and forth between the parchment and the book in his hands, how his black hair was combed neatly to one side, before my eyes wandered down his robe, where I saw a small badge attached to its front. On a green background was a little silver serpent wriggling across it, underneath the serpent was the word "Slytherin" and around the edges of the badge the words "Head Boy" engraved in silver letters.

That brought back the whole dilemma of last night's new conclusions.

"So you _are_ the Heir of –", I mouthed, as I noticed him staring at me, his stern gaze shutting me off immediately.

He eyed me for what seemed to be ages, before he turned his head away again. I exhaled slightly, feeling as if an unseen weight pushed onto my chest. I continued watching Tom for a while, standing a little uneasy beside him.

"What do you really know about the Chamber of Secrets?"

His question caught me quite off guard. He still avoided my eyes and kept staring at the board in front of him, yet I saw that his eyes weren't moving, indicating that he wasn't reading but waiting for me to answer.

"I, well, there are only snippets of what I saw, when… well, before I… fainted. And there are those things I read about the Chamber. Um, I would say –"

"Tell me about the… snippets", he said, still glaring ahead at the parchment.

"I saw, well, the large room I woke up in, where I met you, then there was… water", I began to scratch together everything I might have missed before as I thought about what I had seen. "And something crawled along the floor, I didn't see it, but I heard it, and… there were footsteps and a clanging noise… and a roar, a terrible roar –"

I fixed my eyes on Tom's Head Boy badge, following the serpent's movements. As I continued speaking, I saw him turn his head around slightly, eyeing me with a frown.

"This roar echoed through the hall, deafening, horrifying, then there was silence again, an eerie silence and only a distant noise of something vanishing through some sort of… pipe."

I looked up slowly, recalling every small detail of what I had seen last night. With the memory of the Chamber, the voice, whispering and hissing, came back to me. As I met Tom's dark eyes, I was utterly surprised as I saw what seemed to be eagerness sparkling within.

"Anything else?", he asked, his voice a notch above a whisper.

"Nothing about the Chamber, but –", I reconsidered my answer, having a faint idea whose voice I had heard in that fit of mine. It had woken up the only recent memory of Tom leading me out of the Chamber, where I had heard the same hissing I had heard in the weird vision. "What is the monster within?", I then asked, causing him to raise his eyebrows in surprise, before he frowned at me with his eyes sparkling darkly.

"What do _you_ know about that?"

"Nothing, so I'm asking you", I said, something in my stomach telling me not to push it.

But too late.

"I really don't think that's any of your business", he snapped, turning back to the board.

His mood-swing came quite unexpected. I stared at him for a moment. "Don't you think it's weird that I know about the Chamber?"

"You've most certainly read about it –"

"About the roaring and pipes as well?", I cut him off.

As I watched him, I could almost feel the eager spark in his eyes. He was definitely interested, even though his clenched jaw and mask-like face said something else. There was no need for a why this time…

"Tell me more", he then said, his eyes boring into mine.

"Well, like what?", I asked, not really sure what he wanted to hear.

"Do you know how to open it?"

I frowned. "What?"

He suddenly moved forwards, letting go of the book and quill he was holding, and grabbed my upper arms with such a force, I thought he was going to rip them off. Instead he pinned me violently to the wall next to the notice board, his face so close to mine I could feel his fuming breath on my forehead. His voice was an angry hiss, as he repeated: "Do you know how to open it?"

I glared at him with my mouth open. "I –"

"DO YOU KNOW HOW TO –", he bellowed before he stopped mid-sentence, his head turning left to the exit.

As a gap in the wall became visible and a blonde girl dressed in black robes entered, Tom immediately let go of me and bent down to pick up his note book and quill.

The girl, completely unaware of either my presence or the fuming argument she had just interrupted, threw a smile at Tom as he straightened up in front of the notice board, his head turned to her.

"Hey, Tom. How's the meeting coming along?"

"I'm almost done with the schedule", he replied, his voice as casual as possible, not giving away the slightest hint that he had been shouting only seconds ago. "I'll hand out the date later on."

The girl nodded, moving towards the staircase leading up. "Tell me if I can help."

"Sure", he then said, watching her leave upstairs.

I was still standing pressed against the wall, my breath short, my heart hammering inside my chest. Tom stood just as motionless in front of the board. There was an eerie silence hovering in the room.

Just as I dared to take a step forwards, Tom's hands moved to the board and detached the parchment. He rolled it up, slammed shut his note book and walked towards the table with his bag on it. Pocketing scroll, quill and note book, he then grabbed the bag and walked with long strides towards the exit, completely ignoring me.

I broke my stupor as he climbed through the gap in the wall, vanishing out of sight. I hastily followed him out onto the hallway until I caught up with him at the bottom of the a near staircase. Before I could, however, reach him, I felt a weird sensation inside my stomach as I passed a door on my right.

I gasped in shock as images flickered in front of my eyes. Turning back to the door, I heard myself call, my voice very distant: "Tom!"

To my surprise, he stopped in his tracks and slowly turned around. Whilst I moved closer to the door, I heard his quiet footsteps echoing through the hallway.

"What?", he asked, semi-irritated, semi-curious.

"This is it", I mouthed, following the images in front of my eyes as I opened the door and revealed a bathroom lined with two rows of stalls. Even though a frown crept up my forehead, I moved into the dimly lit room, hearing Tom follow me quietly.

"This is the girls' bathroom", I heard him say matter-of-factly, yet that didn't seem to stop him from following me along the aisle.

Led by an unseen force, I finally stopped in front of a large, cracked and spotted mirror hanging over a half-circle of sinks. Tom stopped right behind me.

As my hands moved – as if motioned by invisible strings – a cold rush ran through my body. My fingers slipped across one the copper faucets and then rested on a very small snake scratched on the cold material.

"This is the entrance", I whispered, half horrified, half surprised that those words had come out so unexpected. I didn't know where that knowledge came from. "This is were the monster escaped…", I added barely audible.

It was as if my brain grew noticeably in my skull, a jerk running through my entire body, a short pain making me wince as a new memory grew inside me.

The realization of which made me gasp.

"You opened the Chamber", I then heard Tom's quiet voice right beside me, not asking but stating the obvious, his tone laden with surprise and admiration.

To my utter horror, I nodded. I _had_ opened the Chamber, releasing the monster within. I felt that I had; everything around me seemed so familiar, it had to be true.

Whatever time period I came from, in that particular time, I had opened the Chamber of Secrets, I remembered it clearly, how I'd done it, and what had happened. There had been attacks, I saw it clearly in front of me, – and it had been my fault.

In the present, I found myself clutching the sink in front of me, staring at my reflection in the dirty mirror above the sink.

_Was that the connection I'd been looking for?_ The reason why I was here? Why I met Tom Riddle? I remembered what I had read in Hogwarts: A History about Salazar Slytherin building the Chamber of Secrets to rid the school of – in his mind – unworthy students. It had begun with Slytherin, went on to his heir and had apparently ended with me. _The Chamber was the key?_

My head began to spin, so I closed my eyes, inhaling sharply. Next to me I could hear Tom move closer.

"You opened it", he whispered and as I opened my eyes, I saw his index finger gently stroking the snake on the faucet.

"So have you", I mouthed, meeting his gaze in the mirror.

He nodded slightly. "It worked then", he said, looking down at the faucet.

"What worked?"

There was a pause before he answered. "The diary."

My head was on the verge of exploding as I stared at him. So he _did_ know about the diary?

"How was it?", he asked eagerly, eyeing me.

"What?", I asked, my blood rushing too loud in my head, that I had trouble understanding him.

"How did you find it? How did it work?"

I glared at him, screwing my eyes. "I –"

"How –"

His eagerness was sickening. I interrupted him while stepping a little back from the sink. "Hey!", I exclaimed, still glaring at him. "I just found out that I released a _monster_ on the students of this school! I have no idea how – or why, I just –", I cut myself off as a wave of nausea washed over me.

Closing my eyes, my hands flying back to death-grip the sink, I tried to swallow the soaring storm of emotions.

Breathing heavily, I then muttered: "Don't you feel bad about that?"

"It wasn't my fault", he said. "Neither was it yours."

I slowly looked up at him.

"No one can control it once it was set free."

"_It_?"

"The… monster", he replied calmly.

I watched him for a moment, how his eyes rested on me, his face giving nothing away about how he really felt. I then tilted my head, my voice a little shaken, as I asked: "How did you know how to open it?"

I would not have dared to ask such things a while back, but now, it felt as if I somehow had gained his trust and interest.

"It took me several years to figure it out, before I could. I had read about my ancestry and about Slytherin's Chamber. Years before I had found out that I was a Parselmouth –"

"A _what_?"

"I can talk to snakes", he added quickly, before he went on, his eyes travelling past me to the snake on the faucet. "I really didn't know what I was doing when I first came into this bathroom. Something had been telling me to look in here for the entrance –"

I nodded, having experienced the same thing only moments ago.

"– I just stood in front of that very sink and told the snake to open and… it _did_. What I didn't know about was the things that were bound to happen afterwards."

"What happened?"

"The monster had… killed a girl", he went on, his voice growing quieter.

"_Killed_?", I breathed in utter shock.

"I didn't know what the monster would do after the Chamber had been opened, I didn't expect it to kill anyone… Slytherin just said _to__clean this castle from unworthy blood_, I should have known he didn't mean to scare them away…"

His voice had become a low whisper as he continued staring at the faucet. I sensed a very tiny spark of regret and concern in it, a side of him I hadn't expected to see. As soon as it had come, however, it went away again.

"Not that I really cared, that girl had been an annoyance for everyone", he said with a short, icy laugh that made me frown slightly.

"But it was your fault", I whispered, staring at him.

"_I_ didn't kill her", he said, his eyes darting back at me, sparkling dark.

"No, but –"

"It wasn't my fault!", he bellowed, before looking away again, shaking his head slightly. "Tell me how you opened it, then", he said after a moment of eerie silence in which only the dropping of water from the faucets could be heard.

I watched him for a while before I recalled the new memory that had been popping up inside my head. _Who was I to blame him?_ _I_ had been opening that stupid Chamber as well! A new wave of nausea rushed up inside, before I swallowed hard and tried to focus on the images inside my head.

"I did the same you did, just… I don't know, it wasn't me who told the snake to open up, even though…", I stammered, frowning helplessly. "It was as if somebody else spoke through me."

Tom watched me very closely. And if I was not entirely mistaken, there was a flash of recognition inside his eyes again.

"Tell me about that diary", I then asked.

He just looked at me.

"Why do I know about it?", I went on, eager to get some answers.

"I don't know why", he then said, his voice calm, but stern. "And I don't know why _you_ found it. But –"

"Yes?"

"But –", he reconsidered his reply, closing his eyes for a second, before eyeing me again. "When I had… opened the Chamber and the monster had killed that girl, the school was going through a tough phase. The Headmaster was willing to close it due to the attack, which I couldn't allow at all, and… _somehow_, the matter was hushed up, yet I was unable to figure out the Chamber and its monster more properly. So I created a diary, that would allow future students to… open it."

I glared at him.

"You found it", he said with a small smile. "And you opened the Chamber."

As I rummaged through my memory I couldn't recall anything being written in that diary, any instructions or whatnot. I couldn't imagine how one would be able to figure anything out of it. I only recalled the vanishing ink.

"How did you… what did you _do_ to that diary?", I asked, my voice a notch above a whisper.

"I enchanted it. I… left a part of my sixteen-year-old self in it. Eager to tell everyone writing in it how to use the Chamber of Secrets."

"Just like that?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, whoever wrote in that diary, you would advise them to go there and do whatever you told them? Just like that? And they would do it?"

"Apparently", he said with a tiny smirk.

_Point taken_. I continued glaring up at him. Had I been that naïve to follow the neat handwriting in a book that told me to open a wicked Chamber and release some sort of monster? Could I really have done that? _Well, how else did I know about the way to open it in the first place?_ He must have been very persuasive…

"You shouldn't worry about that, knowing about the Chamber of Secrets is not a shame", he said, watching me closely.

"But about the monster –"

"It really isn't that horrible, I assure you, every creature in this world has a task, you shouldn't blame them for it."

I bit my lip. Though I felt bad about the prospect of having set free a monster to _"clean the school from unworthy blood"_, Tom's intense, yet reassuring gaze made me think into a totally different direction.

I shouldn't blame myself. Maybe that was my path in life. _Maybe_, I thought on, suddenly seeing something through the fog inside my head, _maybe_ that was why I was here. _To justify my life_. Maybe, because I had opened the Chamber of Secrets willingly and therefore done something not quite appreciated by the world, I had been sent back to the origin of the dilemma. The diary was the link, the Chamber the key. A power, that I did not yet understand, had brought me here, as my life was ending, I was brought back to the origin of _everything_.

Was it why I had died? Or was it the life I had lived that took me so many years back in time? Maybe I should relive the guilt I should have felt when I released the monster? Was this my punishment before my soul could rest in peace? My final quest, the last possibility to justify my life, justify my actions, justify the benefits of death? Was I here to regret what I had done wrong in my former life?

Yet the more I looked into Tom Riddle's dark eyes, the more difficult I found it to feel guilty.

* * *

_**A/N: **Chapter three, in one part this time._

_Let me say a few quick things before we head to the reviews:  
About the Head common room, I know that there is no such thing in the books, but I read about that aspect in many fanfictions and found it quite suitable.  
And about Tom's rapid character change, at least that's how I feel: of course he is suspicious, irritated and disbelieving when he's around Ginny, but when she tells him about doing the same thing he did, he kind of softens, at least understanding a little bit about her appearance. So just in case you were wondering why he first bellows at her and then suddenly smiles… a little clarification._

_And to the reviews: **THANK YOU** everyone again for reading and reviewing, I appreciate every word._

_**Bianca**: Aw, I've missed your hilarious reviews xDD  
It somehow sounds very pro-death, doesn't it? With all the advantages? Floating, feeling not sleepy and all… ah well, not to be falsely interpreted, right? XD  
And yeah, lucky Ginny, gets all the action and Cedric and of course also Tom, even though I should change the genre once we reached that point xD She is some lucky witch, isn't she? And one reason why I'm writing in the first person is for everyone out there to feel like her, getting the action, seeing Tom half naked xDD Nice being an author!  
Yeah, title alert xD I'm glad you get it, I think it's going to be clearer in upcoming chapters.  
I think I got the "touch-then-vision" bit off Charmed in some way, even though I never liked that show, but that gift would be cool.  
Hehe, yeah, damn Slytherins, I totally understand you, even the thing about no hot Gryffindors except Fred and George, **of****course** I think they are hot too, like, semi-adorable, semi-hot, a good mixture anyways xD Every other male Gryffindor sucks, damn right.  
More sweetness ahead, I swear, we're getting there xD_

_**Disclaimer: **Nada. Not making money with that... sadly xD_

_Read and Review! _


	7. Moaning Myrtle Can See Her

* * *

**Unfinished Business**

* * *

**Chapter 4.1**

I continued staring at Tom, my conscience yearning. I suddenly felt as if there was something in the nothingness around me, a purpose apart from the reason why I was here. Yet before I could figure it out, Tom broke the staring contest.

"I can't believe it worked", he said quietly, looking down at the faucet again.

"What?", I mouthed, a little perplexed.

"The diary, I wasn't really sure that it would work… but it did, how else did you learn about this –" His slender index finger ran gently over the engraved snake. "What I don't get, though", he added, looking back at me. "Why are you here? Why now?"

I watched him for a moment. "Well, I think I – when I… died, I have been given a second chance to… relive what I've done –" I swallowed the word "wrong" with difficulty. "They sent me back where the whole… thing –" _Dilemma_. "- had started."

"But I – the Chamber had been opened in June of last year, that's more than a year ago…"

"I don't know why now, and I'm not even sure the… conclusions I made are right, it was just a… guess –"

"So you're here to –"

"To do something again or to…" I sighed, a headache creeping up my temples. "I guess someone wants something done before I can… die properly."

Tom raised an eyebrow.

"I –"

_You have to feel guilty for what horror you had set free!_, a voice screeched in my head. _Guilty!_

"No!", I murmured, trying to shut the voice out.

"No?", Tom asked with an odd expression on his face.

_I couldn't deny it any longer._

"I have to –", I began, echoing the words inside my head. "- feel guilty…"

Tom's expression changed slightly. "Do you?"

I just stared at him, the head ache growing stronger.

"Do you feel guilty for what you have done… in your time?"

His voice was soft and soothing and to my utter surprise, I shook my head.

"No", I whispered, another wave of pain rushing through my head. "Strangely, I don't", I added, looking at him.

"You shouldn't", he told me with a small smile. "There's nothing to feel guilty about."

Even though I felt just like he said, deep inside my stomach was still a tiny knot, protesting viciously.

A moment of silence passed before Tom moved away from the sinks, looking around with a stern expression. I looked at my reflection again, my face becoming more and more unfamiliar. In the mirror, I could see Tom looking back at me as if checking whether I was still there.

I turned around to him, confusion plastered all over my face.

"If I shouldn't feel guilty, then why do I still feel weird about this?", I asked, my voice a mere whisper.

"Of course you feel weird", he replied matter-of-factly. "This is not your time to be." He tilted his head a little. "I would feel weird too."

_That was a new twist._ Ignoring the protesting knot and my aching head, I glared at him. "Does that mean you… you admit that I am… that I _do_ exist… that I'm… real?"

He threw me a smile. "I wouldn't put it that way, but it does make a lot more sense now that I know about your… reasons."

_Oh the relief! He wouldn't shout at me again for being the annoying stalker ghost! Now that I had my "reasons"…_ I couldn't help but frown, opening my mouth to question his reply, just as he turned his head towards the door.

"Listen", he said, before looking back at me. "I have to go now, Head business. I –", he began, smirking slightly. "I guess you'll find me."

_What was _that_ supposed to mean?_

Before I could say anything, he strode back to the door and vanished out of sight, leaving me behind with my head ready to explode. I sighed audible and sank slowly onto the floor in front of the sinks, pulling my knees up to hug them. Closing my eyes I tried to ignore the pain inside my head. _This was too much_.

_This was too confusing_… The more I thought about, the more confusing it got. I didn't know what to do next, even now that I had a slight reason for my being here. _So I was sent back, right, we got that_. But why? _Always the why, I _hate_ the why. The why is annoying! _I let out a grunt and buried my face in my hands.

"Why so sad?", a squeaking voice suddenly interrupted the drumming inside my skull.

I literally leapt up, a scream emerging from my lips as I saw the semi-transparent girl hovering next to me in mid-air.

I opened my mouth, my lips were moving and yet no sound escaped me. I stared at my opponent in utter shock, every thought wiped from my brains.

"Sad _and_ jumpy, my", the girl went on, straightening herself, floating a little over the ground beside the sinks.

Still staring at the girl with my mouth open, my eyes flew over her transparent form. She was wearing a school uniform like me and robes just like Tom, had lank hair and thick glasses sitting on her nose. Her eyes, though as see-through as the rest of her body, were fixed eagerly on me.

"Who are you?", I mouthed, before my mind began working again. "Wait, you can _see_ me?"

The girl tilted her transparent head. "Of course I can see you! I'm not blind!"

"Well, of course not, but –" I gaped at her again. "You really can see me?"

"Yes!", she replied sounding rather annoyed, even though her voice was a mere squeak. "Why is that so shocking?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Well, not… many people can see me."

"Why not?"

"I don't know, but I think mainly because I'm… dead…"

"You're _dead_?", the girl screeched in excitement. "But –", she then added, a confused frown on her see-through face. "But you're not a ghost!"

"No", I merely said, staring at her. "But I guess… you _are_, right?"

She glared at me for a second, before she nodded, a sob suddenly erupting her throat. "I died not long ago…"

"I'm… I'm sorry", I said, unaware why that came to mind.

The girl sobbed again.

"What's your name?", I then asked, as she floated a little up, looking around.

"I'm Myrtle", she said, before her sobs died away again as quickly as they had started. "And you?"

"I'm… Ginny", I said. _Ginny_, the only thing I knew for sure about myself.

"Why are you so sad?", Myrtle then asked again, eyeing me through her thick glasses.

"I'm not… sad, I'm just… confused", I admitted, leaning against the sinks again, looking at myself in the mirror.

"Why are you confused?"

"I don't know why I'm here", I whispered.

Myrtle was hovering closer to me, her translucent form only inches away, her stare quite intense, her forehead furrowed, her glasses slightly askew.

"But you are here", she said, her voice a notch above a screeching whisper.

I nodded, a little uncertain.

"And you are not a ghost like… like… like _me_!", she whined, stretching the last words into a quite unbearable cry.

I leant back immediately, screwing up my face to shut out the horrible howling. Myrtle still floated in front of the sink, gazing dreamily into the mirror, her weeping eventually fading, until she just sighed and looked back at me. I eyed her with an raised eyebrow.

"That is quite unusual, isn't it?", she said as if nothing happened.

"I guess", I replied stiffly.

"You say you're… dead but yet you are not a ghost…"

I nodded barely noticeable, eyeing her with a mixture of shock and confusion.

"Since when are you here?"

"Um, yesterday", I said.

"Hmm, no full-moon, no weird holiday… how did you die?", she then asked with a disturbing delight in her voice.

I raised my eyebrow even higher. "I… actually I don't know how I died."

"Not? Forgot about it?"

"Seems so, yes, I forgot about… everything, actually…"

"Everything?"

"My life, my family… I just remember my name…"

My voice was a mere whisper as I stared back at my reflection, the ghost-girl hovering beside me.

"So you died and forgot about everything and –"

"And I was sent back here."

"Sent back here? What do you mean by that?"

"This is not my time, I… died in… the future…"

Myrtle screwed up her nose, her glasses very askew by now. "Future? How do you know _that_ if everything you can remember is your name?"

I glared at her. _Point taken_. "I just… have this feeling and… visions of a former life…"

The ghost-girl floated around me, eyeing me from the other side now. I turned my head around to follow her movement. "So you're dead, but not a ghost, and yet no one can see you", she muttered, looking at me as if I was a highly interesting object for sale. "No, wait, not everyone can see you. Who can see you?"

"Well, you, obviously", I said a little indifferent. "And Tom and –"

"Tom? Tom Riddle?", the girl asked with a screech.

I nodded, watching her slightly unnerved. "Do you know him?"

"Oh sure, I know him. He is…" A sigh erupted a throat. "He is quite… handsome, isn't he? Yet always so… distant and cold… weird boy, but I wouldn't mind his company, though, such a good-looking –"

I interrupted her rambling (that she continued under her breath with widened, dreamily eyes) by clearing my throat. "When did you die, Myrtle?"

She immediately stopped muttering, staring at me as if I just slapped her.

I widened my eyes a little and raised my hands in surrender. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be… offensive, I just wanted to know… well, -"

"I died last year", she said quite irritated, turning away, before she pointed at a toilet cubicle on the right side. "There."

"You died _here_?", I asked, perplexed. "Last year?", I added in a whisper, before it dawned on me. "Do you mind telling me how you died?"

She turned her head around and floated into the cubicle, her transparent head looming over the edge of the door. "I was in here when I heard a boy's voice talking in a funny language. I wanted to tell him to get out of here and I opened the door –" She floated through the closed door. "- and then I was dead."

I frowned. "But how?"

"I don't know, I just died…"

"But there must have been a… reason why you died so… suddenly?"

"I only remember these yellow eyes…", Myrtle said in a whisper, before floating above my head towards one of the high windows.

I waited for more to come but with that the topic was dropped while Myrtle floated along the windows, muttering to herself. I looked back down to the cubicle, then back to the mirror into my own pale, freckled face. My eyes eventually wandered down and came to a sudden halt on the snake engraved in the faucet.

_That was it!_ More than a year ago, as Tom had said, the Chamber of Secrets had been opened and there had been a murder. I then stared up at Myrtle again, my mouth open. _She had been the girl murdered._ The monster within the Chamber had killed her! The realization almost knocked me over.

"Myrtle?", I asked carefully.

The ghost-girl hovered near the windowsill and looked at me from behind her thick glasses.

"Do you mind me asking… did you find out who that boy was? The one whose voice you heard just before you… died?"

"No", she whined and span around again.

_Alright. No help from her side, then._ I sighed and looked back at the snake on the faucet. Nobody knew that Tom had opened the Chamber, it really had been hushed up. That meant nobody blamed him for anything. _Maybe_… I stared at my reflection in the dirty mirror, my eyes narrowed, my mind racing_. Maybe I was here, in his time, to make him think? Blame him for what he had done? Make him feel guilty?_ But how should that work? Why should I blame him when I had done the same thing?

Confusion rushed over me once again. _The why was back_…

I threw a glance back at Myrtle who seemed very interested in something outside the window, before I turned around to leave. Looking at the cubicle as I passed it, I couldn't help but remember the images I had seen. _I opened the Chamber and released a monster and yet I didn't feel guilty. Why? _Maybe it had not been my fault after all. _Was that why I felt as if I couldn't be blamed?_

The head ache came back pounding violently against my skull. I sighed and left the bathroom. As I stepped onto the hallway, I realized I had no destination. Once again, I felt viciously out of place. Just as I turned around I saw a group of little boys striding along the hallway, heading straight towards me, chatting and laughing. I expected them to walk right through me – yet to my utter surprise, they walked around me.

I gaped after them.

"Hey!", I then shouted. "Hey, wait, can you see me?" It didn't matter how stupid I just sounded, I was too eager to find out why they had walked around me.

Yet –

No. They didn't stop. They didn't turn around to glare at me as if I was mental. They didn't even seem to hear me. _But why did they walk around me?_ Maybe they felt me. _Maybe they felt me?_ Did my presence grow and I didn't notice? Why –

Oh.

Finally an answer span around in my head.

It seemed as if my weird condition had changed when –

_Yes._

Tom Riddle had more or less admitted that I was real.

Was that why Myrtle had seen me?

Suddenly I had my destination. _Tom_. I had to find him, tell him that him admitting I was real would bring me back, would make me visible. Somehow. Sort of. _No, no! This time I wouldn't let the why win!_ This time I followed the feeling inside. I felt that he was the one that could bring me out of this miserable state. I didn't care about what would come after I might be visible for everyone again, I didn't care about the fact that I was still lost in a time I didn't belong. _I just wanted to be seen again!_

And I hurried along the hallway. I didn't know where to go but somehow my feet dragged me forwards. I ran down the steps of the marble staircase leading down into the Entrance Hall – just when I saw two people emerge from a lower landing.

_This really was abnormal!_

Tom Riddle walked across the Entrance Hall, talking to the black-haired girl I had seen on various occasions now. She looked up at him with a vague expression on her flushed face, while he walked onwards, his eyes straight ahead, even looking a little indifferent.

It didn't matter where they came from, the fact was, as they both walked right towards the large oak doors leading outside, their backs now turned to me, I sprinted down the stairs.

"Tom!", I called out before I knew what I was doing, my voice echoing through the Hall.

Even in the distance I could see him flinch, yet he didn't turn around.

He didn't. But _she_ did.

* * *

_**A/N**: Chapter 4 part one - this time there are two more parts to come to complete chapter 4, half of them already written._

_So, new twist here, what do you think?_

_**Bianca**: Lol. Your theory of Tom being pregnant, oh my god!! xDDD Well, who knows, right? He is a mystery after all!  
His creepy eagerness, hehe, yeah, same thing as Myrtle's disturbing delight of death xDD But yeah, he admires Ginny sort of, and there's more to come. She actually pulled some lever and twisted him xDD More in the next part!  
About your maybe ("Maybe she just came back to see if it would work between them") - lol!! I mean that's exactly why I'm writing this! xDDD But well, I can't just write it that way, I don't want to write cliches and such, confusing plot is necessary xDD  
About Seamus - OMG!! That's my exact opinion about him - I love the accent, Irish accent is sooo cute!! But then when I look at him... irgh, nah, close your eyes and just listen to his voice xDDDDD  
So, jup, more sweetness ahead, have it all planned out in my head!  
And I hope you saw this update in time! Thanks again for your review - I hope the next time they won't cut you off, that is so mean!! _

_**Disclaimer**: I own nothing._


	8. You Can't Ignore Me!

* * *

**Unfinished Business**

* * *

"_Tom!", I called out before I knew what I was doing, my voice echoing through the Hall._

_Even in the distance I could see him flinch, yet he didn't turn around. _

_He didn't. But _she_ did._

**Chapter 4.2**

I stopped completely taken aback as the black-haired girl stared at me, _directly_ at me, not _through_ me, but _at_ me. My jaw dropped a little. She raised an eyebrow and watched me over, her nose screwed up as if she was sniffing something bad. Tom turned around eventually, looking bewildered from the girl beside him to me.

Our eyes met for just a second in which I knew we was wondering, completely shocked, why the girl could see me, before he looked back at her.

"Tom?", the girl then addressed him, turning her head towards him without taking her eyes off me. "Who's she?"

Tom looked back at me, considering what to say, his jaw set, his expression reminded me of the time when he had dragged me to the nurse who had then told him that she couldn't see me. And now even vice versa it was a complete shock for him.

I opened my mouth to say something, but Tom just glared at me for another second, before he looked back at the black-haired girl.

"What do you mean?", he then asked, causing the girl to frown – and me to feel a stab in my middle area.

"But – that girl – she called your name – and", the girl stammered, locking eyes with Tom who just looked down at her, his face calm.

"There's no girl", he said with a smile that made the black-haired girl blush heavily again. "Come on now, we're late for Herbology."

With that he put an arm around the short girl's shoulder and turned her around towards the oaks doors – not without throwing a glance back at me before leaving the castle.

I stared after them, completely stunned by what he had done. He had ignored me. _Pretended that I wasn't real_. What had been growing stronger, fell into itself again. I literally felt my presence shrink. And not long afterwards, a large group of people emerged from the Great Hall to my left and this time no one walked around me but straight through me.

There I was again, invisible to the world around me.

Just because Tom Riddle was –

_What?_ Too proud? Afraid of people finding out that there was a weird presence of the future haunting him? _Selfish, ignorant –_

I let out a frustrated groan and sat down on the last step of the stairs. Pondering, I propped my elbows on my knees and buried my face in my hands. _How could he?_ Oh I hated to depend on anybody – yet he was the only way that I could come visible again, be a real person… my entire existence, in this weird time that wasn't the one I belonged to, depended on him!

If only he knew …

I got up eventually, strolling back upstairs, looking uncaringly at the portraits passing by. Not even they seemed to see me anymore. I passed a couple of doors behind which I heard people talking, apparently teachers giving lessons. _I still couldn't believe this was a school._ Wouldn't I feel a terrible knot growing inside my stomach, knowing that I had no past, present or future, then maybe, only maybe, this place would have fascinated me.

People teaching magic, countless hallways and landings, towers and basements, moving portraits, talking ghosts, so many weird, yet interesting things I would have loved to explore and learn about. But I didn't feel like any of that. I just wanted to –

_What?_

I wanted to go back to my life. Actually _live_ an ordinary life, have a purpose of my existence rather than weird thoughts telling me to believe in them even though there was no proof that they were real. But that wasn't possible. My life, the one I lived before, didn't exist any longer. Not here. Not … _now_. My life how I knew it was over and I would never know how it was … to live.

I reached the large portrait of the wizard with the pointy hat and large nose that led to the Head common room. Unlike the last time I had seen it, the wizard wasn't asleep but deeply in thought over a tattered looking book lying on his lap. He didn't look up as I approached him, he – like the other portraits – didn't seem to see me. Not knowing where else to go, I decided to wait for Tom in his common room – and then, when we were alone again, he couldn't deny my existence and I would question him and blame him and –

Before I could plan any more, the portrait suddenly swung open all by itself. I jumped aside just in time to make way for the blond girl I had seen before and who seemed to be the Head Girl. She climbed through the gap in the wall and quickly walked across the hallway, like everyone else unaware of my presence. I soon leapt forwards and walked through the opening in the wall before the portrait swung shut again.

Shaking my head absent-mindedly, I then sank onto one of the couches and stared aimlessly ahead.

I must have dozed off immediately for I suddenly jerked awake again as I heard the quiet squeak of the portrait. I looked around drowsily. The sky outside the windows was already dark. _How long have I been off?_ Still confused, I glared ahead and – met the blonde girl's eyes.

It was just a second before she walked towards the staircase leading up, yet I clearly felt her gaze on me. _She could see me_. My eyes followed her, my mouth open, yet after a second she looked away again, not at all flustered by the view of a girl sitting on the couch of her common room. I gaped after her until she vanished up the stairs.

After a moment of shock, I got up and slowly walked over to the two staircases. Hearing the Head Girl in her room upstairs, I then decided to better get out of her sight, leaving her in the impression that what she had seen was not real after all. I unhurriedly descended the stairs and walked straight into the dark bathroom. As soon as I entered, there was a flickering light springing to life, illuminating the small room.

I walked to the sink, turned on the faucet and splashed cold water into my face. Sighing loudly, I at least felt as if the head ache had finally surrendered. Drying my hands on a towel next to the sink, I then left the room again, the light fading behind me. Just as I turned to the other door on the landing, I could hear voices echoing from the common room.

Squeezing myself against the wall, I quietly crept up a few steps to listen.

"I told you before, Tom!", I could hear the angry voice of the Head Girl.

"What did I do?", I then heard Tom reply.

"I told you! I didn't want to see any more girls in our common room! This is for prefects and Heads only and you know that! No social gatherings here!"

"What are you talking about?" There was clearly annoyance and anger in his tone.

"This girl, of course, one of the many, I actually lost track of counting them! But I am sick of them lurking here! If you keep telling every other girl our password I will have to go to Dippet and report you!"

"What girl?" I could almost imagine Tom's tense, highly confused face.

"The red head!"

Red head? _Oh my_ – so she had seen me! She had just ignored me!

Tom seemed equally taken aback for he didn't reply.

"Let this be my last warning, Tom, no more girls! Or I'll bring all my friends here and I know that you would hate that!"

After that there were echoing footsteps, a quiet squeak and then silence.

I pressed myself against the wall, listening hard – just as quick footsteps came bouncing down the stairs. I saw Tom's surprised gaze as he saw me leaning against the wall. He threw me a glare and walked past me. _Oh no, mister, you won't ignore me again!_ I quickly followed him into his room before he could even close the door. He threw me another glare and walked over to the windows to pull the curtains shut.

He then turned around and faced me, a tired expression on his handsome, pale face.

"Why could she see you?", he asked after a while.

I watched him, biting my lip. Even though I was angry at him for ignoring me in the Entrance Hall, I suddenly felt sorry for him. It must be weird and exhausting to be in my presence…

"Because you believe in me", I said very quiet.

He narrowed his eyes. "What?"

"You… admitted, more or less, that I am… real… remember? In Myrtle's bathroom?"

"Myrtle? You met Myrtle?"

"Yes, after you left."

"She saw you?"

"Yes."

"And -"

"And I know that she was murdered by the monster you set free."

He glared at me.

"But that's not the point", I said, not only ignoring the knot inside that kept protesting about my lack of guilt, but also his rising irritation. "She actually made me think. After you left, I was seen by Myrtle, then there were these boys who didn't see me, but they didn't walk through me as if they could feel my presence. And then there was the black-haired girl and the Head Girl and –"

"Stop!", he interrupted me, looking utterly confused. "What is your point?"

"That all happened after you said my being here would make sense."

He continued to glare at me.

"You –", I went on, slowly walking towards him. "You can make me… visible."

Tom lowered his head a little, his eyes still boring into mine, his gaze a mixture of shock, confusion and irritation. He then exhaled audible, shaking his head, before turning away. "Rubbish."

"No, it's true, I –"

"Yeah? _True_? Where is the evidence?", he bellowed, his head snatching back to me.

"Up there! Out there!", I replied in same loud voice, pointing at the door behind me. "The Head Girl, she saw me, and Myrtle, and your little girlfriend –"

"Don't", he merely said, his voice tense and quiet.

I frowned at him. "You can't deny that there were people out there who saw me", I said quietly. "You can't ignore that."

He threw me a side glance before he walked over to his bed.

"And you can't ignore me…"

"Why not?", he snapped, staring at me past the curtains of his four-poster bed. "Apparently, if I do exactly that, if I ignore you, you will vanish, did I get that right? If I'm the only one who can make you visible to the world?"

I bit my lip. "But… no. No, I don't think that's how it works. I mean… you could see me even before you admitted that I am real, remember?"

He tilted his head and rolled his eyes. "So I am now bound to help you, eh?"

"I –"

"Yeah, I better help you before I have to spend the rest of my life with your presence haunting me!"

"That's exactly what I want!", I bellowed back, surprised about the anger within.

"Fine!", he snapped. "And how should I do that?"

"Don't ignore me", I said after a while of silently staring at him, my voice unnaturally quiet towards the end.

Tom shot me another glare, before he sat down on his bed, his back turned to me. "You expect quite a lot from me", he then said, his head lowered.

I slowly walked around his bed and stood beside the end of it, watching Tom, before I asked quietly: "Is it that hard?"

He looked up, surprised of how close I suddenly was. "You don't understand."

"Then let me", I replied calmly.

He merely looked away.

"I don't know why", I said after a while, leaning against the bed frame. "But I somehow can't picture you as the boy the blonde girl had described."

He looked up again, exhaustion washed over his pale face. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, you don't seem to socialise much…"

He raised an eyebrow. "Your point being?"

"All these girls she mentioned, what are they?"

Tom gave me a rather intense stare. "I don't see why that is any of your business!"

"I'll find out eventually", I smirked.

Instead of replying he got up and walked past me towards the table on the wall. I turned around and watched him pulling out of his robes and hanging them neatly over the back of the chair next to the window.

"She's not my girlfriend", he then said unexpectedly, emptying his bag on the table. "None of them was."

I raised an eyebrow. "Why are they with you then?"

"Everyone fancies someone with responsibility", he merely said, rummaging through his bag until he pulled out a quill.

"What –"

"I'm Head Boy", he said as if that explained everything. "Everyone wants a piece of that."

I frowned with my jaw dropping slightly. _What?_ _Wow, his arrogance was touchable! _

"They are like minions", he went on, clearly unaware of how his words sounded in my ears. "Stupid, no will, neither interesting nor nice –"

"So why are with them, then?", I asked, completely lost in his weird point of view.

He looked over his shoulder. "I'm still human, am I not?"

_What the heck is that supposed to mean?_ Is he – _oh_! I merely glared at him before he went back to the books on the table. He clearly liked talking about himself and I could see why his "minions" fancied him, apart from his handsome, tall form, he had enough arrogance to blind anyone around him. But that was just one of the many facets of Tom Riddle as I was about to discover.

"Even though I'm not proud of that", he went on, sitting down on the chair at the table, flipping through a rather large book. "But what can I do? They'll find out sooner or later that I don't like them."

"You are using them", I said, semi-amused, semi-accusing.

"Yes", he said without looking at me. "Just like they are using me."

"What?"

"They like me as much as I like them. But it's the people you're being seen with that make life easier here at Hogwarts."

I tilted my head. Was there… sadness in his voice? A little melancholy?

"I have other goals in life than to please anyone as unimportant as those girls."

"And what is that?", I asked, watching him closely.

It was then that he seemed to remember my presence and glanced over his shoulder at me, his brows furrowed. "I've said enough."

With that he looked back at the book in front of him, completely shutting out that I was still there. I watched him for a while, before I sat down on his bed, looking around the room. Soon the scratching of his quill was the only sound left in the room. I eventually cleared my throat, actually making him wince, even though he showed no other reaction.

"I'm still here, you know?", I merely stated after a while, not able to stand the silence any longer.

"I know", he replied.

"So what do you want to do about that?"

"I don't know."

"Well, you know I have no place else to go –"

"Less than two days", he replied instead, causing me to frown. "You've been here for less than two days and you are already messing with my life."

"I – what?"

He then turned around, after placing the quill neatly next to the parchment he was writing on. His eyes were as dark as the black velvet curtains in front of the windows as he stared at me.

"You just came into my life and it doesn't look as if you are going to leave soon. You just… mess everything up!"

"But –"

"You can't imagine how exhausting it is, how… confusing. Suddenly there is this girl and I'm the only one who can see her. And she tells me all this rubbish… but… I can't help but begin to believe her."

_That_ caught me quite off guard. I gaped at him. "You believe me?"

"I can't help it, I really don't want to, I just want to ignore you and live my life how I did before I met you. But –" His jaw clenched visible. "You won't let me…", he added quietly, lowering his gaze.

I continued staring at him.

"I shouldn't feel like this", he muttered more to himself than to me.

"Like what?"

He quickly recovered. "Nothing", he merely said and turned back to his homework.

But I had sensed a change in his attitude, a slight one but still. I slowly got up from his bed and walked towards him, reaching out my hand to touch his shoulder, but withdrawing it as soon as he turned his head around.

"I know this must be exhausting and I am just as confused as you are, but… _what_ does it feel like also?", I pressed slightly.

He glared up at me, his sitting position not minimizing his towering presence.

"Like there is someone who understands", he muttered, his lips barely moving, even though his eyes were fixed on mine.

_And yet another side of him. Impressive_. I was too astonished about what he had said to notice him standing up until he was towering me by more than a head, standing only inches away from me. I stared up at him with my mouth slightly open but before I could relish the moment, he pushed past me.

"Excuse me", he merely said and left the room, leaving me dazzled.

It was as if someone was squeezing my insides, my stomach seemed to turn and my head felt awfully light. I sank onto the chair he had been sitting on just moments ago, my eyes wearily flying over his neat handwriting and the open book. It was then that I seized the quill, took an empty sheet of parchment and was about to write him a note telling him I'm sorry and I should better leave. I didn't know why but that was just the right thing to do in that very moment.

I folded the parchment and got up – just as he entered the room again, his expression even more exhausted, with his hair slightly messed up as if he had been running his fingers through it. Our eyes locked for a moment, before I broke the eerie silence by storming towards the door, shoving the note into his hand.

"Where are you going?", he asked, staring at me, his fingers unnoticeably closing around the parchment.

"I – I cannot stay –", I stammered, moving closer to the door that he was still blocking.

"Why?"

"I don't know _why_!", I blurted out, growing very angry whenever a why popped up in front of me.

He eyed me a little bemused. "Stay", he simply said, causing me to gape at him.

"What?", I mouthed.

"Stay."

* * *

_**A/N**: Alright, and the next part. Enjoy. _

_If you give me loads of reviews, I promise to upload the third part later tonight (means it's now 9:30am in my timezone xD, later tonight would mean around 6pm) - so until then you have 8 and a half hours to review and tell me how you like it._

_And prepare yourself for a very long and majorly important third part! It's going to be very... juicy xDD_

_Have fun!_

_**Disclaimer**: Me. Nada._


	9. Flying Hands And Flashing Images

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**Unfinished Business**

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_**A/N: Warning! Mature content ahead! **_

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_He eyed me a little bemused. "Stay", he simply said, causing me to gape at him._

"_What?", I mouthed._

"_Stay."_

**Chapter 4.3**

I felt my cheeks burning and my eyes watering. "No", I then whispered and tried to push past him, but he still refused to move aside. "No, let me. I… I don't want to be a burden anymore!"

"You're not."

I cautiously stepped back a little, watching him very closely. "I'm not?"

"You didn't choose to be here", he said quietly. "Stay. You can't run away anyway."

_He was right_. I couldn't run away. I didn't even know where to go. But… staying here? It felt weird to see him so… benevolent. _What was he up to_?

I stared at him, motionless in front of him. It was then that I snatched the parchment back out of his hand and turned around to sit down on his bed, tearing the note in pieces as I did so.

"What was that for anyway?", he asked, slowly closing the door and walking back to the desk.

"Nothing", I muttered, avoiding his gaze.

_Here I was now_. Unable to leave. But wasn't that exactly what I wanted? Him to understand and help me? But now that he seemed to do so, I couldn't stand it? _What was wrong with me?_

I heard him sit down at the table again, yet there was no scratching of his quill or him flipping through the book. As I turned around to him I just saw him sitting there, staring motionless onto the parchment in front of him. A moment of silence passed before he suddenly slammed the book shut, causing me to wince heavily. He then got up from the chair and walked to his closet.

I inhaled deeply, watching him with a rising feeling inside that I couldn't put a name on yet. All I knew was that it felt weird (in a somehow neutral way) to sit on his bed, late at night, with him telling me to stay. But although this situation should have made me feel uncomfortable and eager to leave and protest to stay alone with this boy I merely knew for less than two days, I didn't feel uncomfortable. _Not really_. I was just very, very keen on knowing what came next.

But unfortunately, he wasn't a person whose actions one could easily predict.

Tom opened the closet and rummaged through its compartments before he pulled out a rather large looking green sweater. He turned it in his hands, before he slowly turned around to face me, his eyes immediately finding mine.

As I tilted my head, he simply threw the sweater at me – that I caught rather clumsily, frowning.

"I venture to doubt that you like to sleep in your uniform", he merely said, before he turned to close the closet.

I stared at him, before my gaze sank onto the sweater in my hands.

"Care to tell me where exactly I should sleep?", I then pondered barely audible, raising an eyebrow.

"You're sitting on it", he said suddenly from the other side of the bed.

I turned around in shock, glaring at him, my mouth slightly open.

"Don't worry, there's enough space", he said with a slight smirk.

I continued staring at him. _Was he serious?_ He seemed to be as he began to unbutton his shirt. I quickly looked away, now certainly feeling at least a little uncomfortable. Clearing my throat, I then got up and walked to the door.

"Um, I'll… I'll be back…", I muttered and left the room, the sweater clutched in my hands.

Closing the door behind me, I exhaled loudly. _What was going on in there?_ I then entered the bathroom, checking my face in the mirror. _My, did I look flushed!_ Placing the sweater gently on the ground, I began to wash my face, trying to wipe the crimson off it.

_You're behaving absolutely stupid! He's just offering you a place to sleep, nothing else! He can't risk it that you're being seen in the common room again or he'll get trouble with the Head Girl_, I tried to explain the situation to my flustered self.

_And of course he doesn't think _anything_ else!_, another small voice muttered.

I shook my head and began to undress, trying to squeeze every thought from my brains. I then pulled over the huge sweater that easily covered my knees, yet it was warm and quite soft. I sighed. _Damn_. Picking up my skirt, blouse and sleeveless sweater, I then left the bathroom, still wearing my socks and shoes as I entered Tom's room with a heavy weight inside my stomach.

_Last chance to run._

But no, I merely walked over to the left side of the bed, put my clothes on the ground and stared at the already thrown back sheets. I then noticed Tom standing by his desk, turning around as I cleared my throat. This night he was wearing a black pyjama that made his face look eerily white in front of the black curtains. He nodded and finished packing his bag, before he walked to the right side of the bed, facing me.

"Isn't this weird to you?", I then blurted out, unable to hold it any longer.

He merely smirked and climbed into the bed. I watched him with a frown before I followed him, slipping out of my shoes and socks, careful not to occupy too much space of the rather big bed. I slipped under the sheets and lay very stiff on my back, staring at the dark ceiling. Next to me, Tom waved his hand towards the lamp on the nightstand and then darkness fell around us.

For a moment I was blinded by the sudden dark, then my eyes got used to it. I heard Tom move beside me and as I dared to turn my head to him, I saw him lying on his left side, his back turned to me. His quiet breathing was the only sound I then heard – beside the nagging thud of a feeling swirling through my head.

I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed as I lay motionless under the sheets beside him.

But soon enough, fatigue washed over me and I closed my eyes and forgot about my whereabouts. I snuggled into the sweater and the sheets and found myself in a dreamless sleep. Several hours later, as it seemed, I awoke to a sudden movement. I gasped and rolled onto my back, staring wide-eyed at the ceiling. As I threw a glance at Tom's sleeping form beside me, I began wondering what had woken me. I sat up really slowly and looked around the pitch black room.

_I hated complete darkness_. I couldn't see anything, not the bed frame, the closet, the table. Everything was black. Shivering heavily, I pulled my knees up under the sheets and placed my arms around them, unblinkingly staring into the blackness, expecting the worst, my imagination on high speed. It was then that I remembered how I used to do the same thing when I was younger, sitting on my bed in my dark room, staring into the darkness, unable to go back to sleep.

I felt completely vulnerable, a lump forming inside my throat.

So it was not at all surprising, that a sudden movement to my left caused me to almost jump out of the bed – if it wasn't for the hand resting on my arm. I looked around in shock and squinted my eyes to see Tom's face looming in the dark next to me.

"What's wrong?", he asked, his voice a mere whisper.

"I can't sleep", I simply said, my voice shaking.

His hand was still on my arm, his touch unnaturally warm and soothing. I bit my lip as I tried to make out his eyes in the dark. My heart jumped against my ribcage, my blood rushed through my ears. He then motioned me to lie down again, as he gently pushed me onto the bed. I rolled onto my side, one hand under the pillow, facing him, and pulled the bed sheets up to my nose.

He lay down as well, his face not far away from mine. I was still shivering, feeling stupid and frightened at the same time. It was then that he reached out and grabbed my hand, gently closing his fingers around mine. I barely dared to breathe as he moved a little closer, his free hand resting under his head just as mine. We locked eyes and before I knew it, I felt safe again.

Sleep washed over me and the next moment I closed my eyes, sinking into the darkness that wasn't scary anymore. I still felt the warmth of Tom's hand when I woke up hours later. Moving under the sheets, I drowsily opened an eye to look around the room, that was not as dark as I last saw it. There was sunlight trying to break through the thick curtains, casting eerie beams of light through the dim room.

I opened both eyes and noticed Tom's face rather close to mine. Rolling onto my back, I turned my head to him, how he slept peacefully, breathing quietly, with both his hands under his pillow, his pale face calm. Watching him, I then raised the hand he had held hours ago up in front of my face, smiling slightly. Rolling onto my side again, I continued watching him, savouring the comfortable feeling inside my stomach.

As he opened his eyes, however, I felt myself blush heavily, thankful for the dimness still wavering around the room. He watched me for a second quite confused, then raised his eyebrows, yawning slightly.

"Slept well?", he murmured, pushing his hair out of his eyes with one hand.

I just nodded, still unable to look away from him. A ghostly silence erupted between us in which we just stared at each other.

Just as I wanted to open my mouth to say something, he moved forwards, causing me to wince and draw back quickly. But he seized my wrist in a gentle yet fierce way and looked at me, his eyes boring into mine. I gasped quietly as he moved even closer, his face only inches away, the tips of our noses already touching.

"Don't look so shocked", I heard him whisper, a smirk playing around his dark eyes. "I won't bite."

I merely stared at him, my breath quickening. He propped on one elbow, while his other hand still held my wrist. My head was glued to the pillow as it seemed, I couldn't move an inch as I watched him leaning over me, feeling his breath on my skin. I swallowed hard as he leant closer, his eyes fixed on mine, and then –

Still eyeing me, he placed his lips on mine, their warmth and softness quite breathtaking and unexpected. I opened my mouth slightly as he let go of my wrist and cupped my face with his hand, his lips hovering over mine. As if waiting for permission he looked down at me. I replied his intense gaze and couldn't help but move forwards, our lips colliding in the process.

Closing my eyes, I leant into the kiss, shutting out the voice of reason that seemed to be outraged anyway. His hands pulled my head closer to him and so we lay both rolled on our side, facing each other, _kissing_ each other. As he parted my lips with his tongue, I felt a shiver running down my spine. His hand ran over my shoulder to my back, gently pushing my body closer to his.

I obeyed willingly and soon felt my body pressed against his. Our lips met while our tongues were fighting, his hand running through my hair as he pulled me even closer. My fingers eventually found the buttons of his shirt as I sucked hungrily on his lower lip. Just as I was about to unbutton his shirt, he rolled onto his back, pulling me on top of him.

For the first time after our lips had collided, I looked at him and couldn't help but smile right into his handsome face. He shot me a smirk, before his hands leapt up again and pulled my head closer to his, with both of us eager to continue whatever just happened between us.

_That's exactly what you have feared would happen!_, the voice of reason screeched inside my head.

_Shut up!_, was my only response as I cupped Tom's face and kissed him rather avidly.

Lying on top of him, I couldn't care less. His arms held me tightly, his fingers playing with my hair as I kissed the corner of his mouth. The sweater he had given me suddenly felt much too warm and I was more than grateful as his hands eventually ran along its rim, pushing it up. As his fingers made contact with my skin, I felt another shiver running through my veins. Tilting my head, kissing him eagerly, our lips only parted to catch our breaths.

His hands ran gently over my back, stroking my shoulder blades as they did so, his tongue playing with mine, until his lips eventually caressed my skin as he moved his head towards my neck. I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply as he softly kissed my earlobe. As his lips ran down my throat, his hands still under my sweater, a thought popped into my head.

_What am I doing?_

But before I could answer that, I felt him moving under me, his arms tightly around, before he rolled around in one motion, suddenly lying on top of me. I looked up at him, as he smiled down at me. He then leant back, propped on one arm, while his other hand pushed up the sweater so that it was barely covering my breasts. I watched him a little breathlessly as his slender fingers ran over my abdomen, circling around my belly bottom, before they wandered lower.

His hand almost moving on its own, Tom then leant down to me again, our lips meeting hungrily. My heart was jumping almost violently against my chest as I felt him stroking the inside of my thigh, while his lips kept me from making any sound. The more he kissed me, the more impulsively he got. While my hands simply ran through his hair, caressing his neck, his hands almost caused me to shriek in pleasant surprise.

I clang onto him, his lips still closing around mine, our hearts beating against each other. My mind went numb in the end, the voice of reason silent from indignation. There was nothing but two bodies pressed against each other, lips sucking, tongues wrestling, hands caressing – while the room grew brighter with every moment, more and more sunbeams trying to break through the thick curtains.

It was as Tom began nibbling on my earlobe, as I came (at least a little bit) back to my senses. My breath made hanks of his hair fly as I buried my face in the hollow of his neck, my eyes closed, every nerve concentrated on the soft movement of his teeth and lips. My arms were pulled tightly around him as he continued kissing along my jaw line. He moved slightly on top of me, his arms propped on each side of my body, as he moved back to my lips, closing them vehemently around mine, his tongue forcing its way inside my mouth.

I gasped (or at least I tried) for breath as he kept kissing me. He eventually leant back, equally out of breath. Our eyes met for just a second, before in a rush of a moment he pulled the sweater over my head, revealing my bare chest that kept rising and falling rapidly. Leaning closer with a vicious smile, his hands moved over my chest, caressing my breasts tenderly. Biting my lip, I felt how he lowered his head to kiss my chest, his lips moving along my skin.

My hands then flew towards his chest, beginning to unbutton his shirt, and seconds that I didn't count later, his shirt lay somewhere else, my eyes flying hungrily over his bare chest as he leant back a little. He tilted his head and grinned down at me, his lips soon after colliding with mine again. My fingers ran along his back, my nails scratching over his skin as he kissed the hollow of my throat.

In the heat of the moment, he then got rid of his pyjama bottoms, before our chests collided as we kissed eagerly again, his hands holding my face, his body heavy on mine – even though I wouldn't complain. His warmth, his touch, his ingratiating presence made me feel too dizzy to think anything. The voice of reason was long gone and there was nothing inside my head but the burning desire to never let this moment end.

I closed my eyes and inhaled with relish, as he leant back a little to catch his breath. As I opened my eyes again, I saw him watching me, licking over his lips. I locked eyes with him and was about to move back up to his lips, impatient to feel them again, but he merely slid off my body, his eyes still fixed on me, while his hands moved down my body and came to a soothing stop on my hips.

He stroked my hip bones with his thumbs, before he, quite elegantly, hooked his thumbs into the rim of my underwear and removed it smoothly. I bit my lip as he placed a tender kiss on my hip bone, before he moved up again, his lips meeting mine. I kissed him hungrily, my hands running through his hair, as he – still kissing me – grabbed one of my hands gently and guided them down to his boxer shorts. Before I knew it, I had pulled them off, leaving the only clothes surrounding us the bed sheets.

He moved on top of me, his muscles flexing as my arms wrapped around his upper body. He leant back a little, his eyes boring into mine. I watched him breathlessly, feeling my heart pound restlessly inside my chest. He bit his lip, the first time I actually saw a sign of slight worry on his handsome face. But I moved my hands up his neck and caressed his cheeks, smiling at him; giving him the signal he had waited for.

Leaning in to kiss, I felt him shifting his position on top of me, until I felt a pleasant burning creeping up my body. Holding onto him very tightly, my head buried in his neck, I closed my eyes, my mind completely shutting down now. He wrapped his arms equally tight around me and then lifted me up slightly, pulling our bodies into a sitting position. A jolt ran through my body, making me gasp slightly, before I wrapped my legs around his waist and pressed myself against him. I felt him breathing into my hair, before he leant back slightly, his hands holding my face as we locked gazes.

Suddenly, just as his thumbs caressed my cheekbones, his eyes boring into mine, his body so unbelievably close to mine, I felt a jerk erupting in my head, soon rushing through my entire body. I felt momentarily blinded, as pain made me flinch so violently, I almost jerked my head back, squinting my eyes. My breath quickened as the pain became so intense that I felt as if I would be torn apart from the inside. I even let out a cry of anguish, while lightning raced through my brains, every nerve electrified, very muscle twitching.

And deep within, I knew this pain was not caused by Tom.

As the pain grew stronger I felt myself letting go of Tom, a sudden urge to get away from him even making me push him away. Clumsily drawing back, I then fell off the bed, the throbbing as I hit my foot on the bed frame only a single stitch in an ocean of blades. My hands flew up to my head, trying to press the pain away. I felt my face twitch in silent screaming, while everything turned awfully white.

In a matter of seconds, that seemed to last forever, I saw images flashing in front of my eyes. Images and voices.

It was as if I was watching a scene from far above. There was a vast hall with pillars and a large statue of an old man with long beard and hair. Several feet in front of the statue lay a body on the ground, motionless. A little girl. _Me_. Red hair lay lank around a small, freckled face, with cheeks white as marble. On the chest lay a book, clutched by a pale hand. _The diary_. A black-haired boy with glasses knelt nearby, staring towards one end of the hall where a tall, black-haired boy was walking towards the two. _Tom_.

"She won't wake", he said, his voice hollow.

"What do you mean she won't wake? She's not –", the other boy asked.

"She's still alive. But only just."

The boy with glasses stared at the other boy.

"Listen, we've got to go. We've got to save her!", he urged, but the other boy merely stood beside them, tall, towering, a twisted smile on his handsome face.

"I'm afraid I can't do that", he said. "You see, as poor Ginny grows weaker… I grow stronger."

Suddenly I saw the scene from below, seeing the tall, black-haired boy towering the little girl and the boy with glasses. An evil grin crept around his mouth.

"Funny, isn't it?", he said in an ice-cold voice. "The damage a silly little book can do –" He looked down at the girl in utter disgust. "Especially in the hands of a silly little girl!"

The scene blurred and my own scream echoed through my head. As soon as the pain had come, it was gone again and I found myself crouching on the floor, my knees pulled up to my chest, my hands still holding my head. Tears spilled helplessly from my eyes, the aftermath of the images I saw burning itself into my brain. Shaking from head to toe, I opened my eyes, blinking heavily, to see a very pale, very concerned face in front of me.

I gasped in shock.

Tom knelt in front of me, having wrapped the bed sheets around my shivering body, having himself covered by wearing his boxer shorts again. His hands lay soothingly on my knees, his eyes boring into mine, a frown on his forehead.

"What happened?", he asked, his voice quiet but worried.

I sobbed, staring at him. _No. That didn't happen. It couldn't be…_

"Did I hurt you?", he went on, whispering, but I shook my head.

_No, he hadn't hurt me in the present, but in the future._

"Ginny", his soft voice broke through the curtain of disbelief, shock and fear. "Speak to me."

His hands were closing gently around mine, lowering them slowly. His face was so close to mine I could feel his breath on my tear-soaked cheeks. I stared at him and tried to fight the emotions rising inside. Suddenly the voice of reason was back, louder than ever.

_What have you done? What have I told you? Do not trust him, he is not the one he seems to be! You saw it! He almost killed you when you had his diary!_

_NO!_, I screamed at myself._ He didn't! Not this Tom, not him… it was the diary, the magic within. He didn't know how it would work, it is not his fault!_

But the voice within disagreed and continued ranting. I lowered my head, resting it on my knees, tears streaming down my face silently. I felt Tom's hands cupping my face, wiping away the tears with his thumbs.

"Ginny", his voice once again rang in my ears, so different from the ice-cold voice I had heard just seconds ago. "Say something…"

"I'm… I'm sorry", I merely uttered, my voice breaking.

"What for?"

I looked up into his face. "That you… have to see me… like this", I whispered, suddenly feeling the urge to avoid his gaze. "So weak…"

"It doesn't matter", he said to my surprise and wrapped his arms around me.

I sobbed repeatedly, burying my face in his shoulder.

_No. This Tom wouldn't try to kill me. And he shouldn't be blamed for what he had done to me through his diary. He didn't know. No, this Tom wasn't aware of the powers he had._

With that I shut off the voice of reason, convincing the largest part of myself that this Tom, the one holding me tightly, was not to blame for anything but igniting a fire inside my heart.

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_**A/N:** Last part of chapter 4 and now, don't tell me you didn't enjoy it? xD_

_I must say this has to be the longest snogging sequence within a story I've ever written! I hope it wasn't… too much xD So, tell me if you liked it and the story itself. Oh and as for the previous chapter: yes, I made Tom a playboy, I don't know, I just like the idea of him being popular with the girls, even though he has other things in life that make him happy._

_Thank you for your reviews! Keep reading and reviewing, I really need your support to stay in the mood of writing (mean author, huh? xDD) _

_**Disclaimer**: Harry Potter and Co do not belong to me, neither the dialogue-snippets used in the vision, that was from the movie._


	10. Return Of Memory And Misery

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**Unfinished Business**

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**Chapter 5**

It was around noon as I finally had the nerve to get up from bed and dress clumsily. I had spent the last hours lying on the bed, staring rather apathetically up at the ceiling, haunted by the new memory inside my brain.

_Regarding that, I'd rather have no memories at all!_

Why, _oh why_, had I seen that exact sequence right at that moment when I felt so close to Tom, when all my doubts about him were pushed aside? Sure, I had told myself that I didn't care about what had happened, back in my former life, how the diary had made me weaker and weaker and how the diary-Tom had used me to grow stronger, but I hadn't convinced every part of my body.

The voice of reason kept nagging me about how this Tom and the Tom I had known through the diary were the same person – but I stubbornly pretended that it wasn't like that. No, it wasn't. _Please, let it be different…_

I felt a lump forming inside my throat as I remembered what had happened after my breakdown.

Tom had carried me gently back to the bed, covering me with the blanket, sitting on the edge of the bed, watching me with growing concern. He had been so nice, so unlike the Tom I had seen in that fit of mine. And all I had been able to do was cry silently, still shaken by the sheer memory of what I had seen. _That stupid memory! It had ruined everything!_ I couldn't even remember how it had felt as Tom had kissed me, held me, how his breath had tickled my skin, how his hands had caressed my cheeks, how his eyes had been so intense, how his body and mine had collided –

A sob erupted from my lips. _I had ruined it_. The loveliest moment I could remember, it had been perfect… I had had somebody to hold me, be with me in the darkness around, an anchor in the nothingness of my existence… _but I had to ruin it_! Exhaling loudly, trying to calm myself, I rolled onto my side and sat up, my bare feet dangling over the edge of the bed, the sheets wrapped around me.

_Forget it! It had been wrong to think that you were safe now! From all those people in the world, you had to come back here and meet the person whose diary had almost killed you!_

_BUT HE ISN'T THE SAME PERSON!_, I bellowed. _He is not! He was just a memory preserved in a diary, nothing more! This Tom is different! He cared for me!_

Oh yeah, he did…

As he had to go to his classes this morning, he had watched me with a concern I wouldn't have believed to see on his face. He had kissed my forehead and held my hand until he had to get up.

"Will you be here when I come back?", he had asked.

But I couldn't even reply. I was too shocked, too deep in thought, fighting with my inner voice. I had merely managed a jerky nod, still avoiding his gaze. He had nodded and turned away to gather his clothes, before he got dressed, grabbed his book bag and left. I hadn't moved an inch since then.

Now I sat on the edge of the bed, eager to do something, eager to distract my mind. I got up, ignoring the dizziness inside my head, and picked up my clothes. I dressed rather clumsily, my hands still shaking viciously. I inhaled deeply, before I turned to leave the room, my hand already touching the door handle.

_But where should I go? And what -_

But that wasn't important anymore as everything began to spin in front of my eyes. Once again I felt as if the ground wanted to absorb me, as if everything around me faded, leaving behind a blurry nothingness. I didn't dare to move, afraid I would fall into the emptiness. Squeezing my eyes shut, I couldn't help but welcome the memories that were running through my nerves. Suddenly letting go of the handle, I felt myself fall to the ground, where I lay, motionless, my muscles twitching yet I couldn't move.

And in my stupor I opened my eyes wide as everything came back.

_Everything_… there it flashed in front of my eyes. _My life_. My childhood, my youth… my death… I wanted to fight against it. _NO MORE MEMORIES_! But I couldn't do anything but witness my life over and over again, how the memories grew stronger with each heartbeat. Snippets of a life I had forgotten about, a life I wish I never had…

I saw myself surrounded by a smiling couple. _My parents_. And there was a bunch of boys standing around me, looking down at me, all of them having the same freckled face like me. _My brothers_. The next moment I saw myself, my little self, running through a garden along with my brothers, hunting small weird looking creatures. I was laughing. I felt safe.

While I lay motionless on the floor in Tom Riddle's room, feeling tears inside my eyes, I remembered my family. _My family_. I felt their love, their support, their embraces. The safety of home. And I remembered learning so much about magic. _Magic_… the thing I thought impossible only a few days ago. I always had it in me. My whole family had it. My brothers all went to this school, the school, I, too, hadn't believed to be real. _Hogwarts_.

I remembered having received a letter that would allow me to attend the school of Witchcraft and Wizardry when I had just turned eleven. I recalled the ride in the train taking every student to Hogwarts. I met friends, I felt safe. But then there were black episodes and I found myself standing in a bathroom staring at a faucet. _No_! I had been in my first year when I had opened the Chamber of Secrets.

But –

I didn't do it willingly. I felt the urge inside, someone telling me to do so, forcing me. Then I saw the diary inside my little hand. _His diary_. But no. Tom hadn't just told me the secret of how to open the Chamber and release the monster. No. I knew I would never have done that on my own. No… he had forced me. He had been… in me. The piece of soul preserved in his diary had possessed me. He had used me.

Like he used everybody else around him, I recalled while lying on the floor, within being bombarded by old and new memories. _Minions_, I heard his voice, full of disgust. _I have other goals in life_, he had said. And I saw that he would succeed. There was a particularly strong memory growing inside my brain. A fear. A strong fear of someone whose name no one spoke. Even as I remembered the name, I felt a shiver running down my spine. _Lord Voldemort_.

A Dark wizard so powerful and evil only few had survived his anger. A mask-like expression, abnormally white skin and grotesque features, red eyes in a snake-like face. A walking horror. I had seen it and recalled it to be the last moment of my life. Suddenly I was thrown back and saw fiery words in the air, a name. _Tom Marvolo Riddle_. I gasped in utter shock as the letters rearranged. _I am Lord Voldemort_. And I saw Tom's handsome face slowly changing into the snake-like features of Voldemort.

Terror gripped me, a scream about to break free. _NO! That was not possible_, a small part inside my mind protested, but it wouldn't do. More memories rained down on me. A fight, masked people. His followers. And I saw people scream and run and fall. None of them would get up again. Panic rose inside me and suddenly, a white light hit me straight in the chest –

And I found myself kneeling on a marble floor splattered with blood.

My knees were scratched and my fingers numb from clutching a wand in my hand. I looked around in terror as a scream echoed through the large hallway I was in. I clumsily got back to my feet and rushed forwards as several masked and hooded figures emerged from a nearby room. I ducked their flashes of light and ran on until I reached a large staircase.

And then I saw it – and the memory made me scream in pain as I lay on the floor in Tom's room, my brain elapsing – at the bottom of the stairs stood a tall figure in a long black cloak, a wand in his white, long-fingered hand, his red, slit-like eyes directly staring up at me, a twisted smile on his distorted, pale face. _Voldemort_. Around me I saw people fighting, flashes of light shot through the hallways, screams and laughter cut the air.

And I stared down at the tall figure, petrified by fear and shock. I watched him raise his wand, pointing it up the stairs. I felt my own hand shaking, willing to fight. But I couldn't move. Felt myself once again, just like I felt five years ago, mesmerized by the towering presence at the bottom of the stairs. But this was slightly different. Now I stood face to face with the man whose sixteen-year-old self I never really encountered.

While I now stared into those red eyes, I recalled the memory of Tom Riddle, whose diary fell into my hands so many years ago. How I had shared my every thought and fear and desire with him, how I had relished the idea of having someone who understood and cared and how I had to find out later that it had been only a lie. How he had used me, possessed me, how my soul had been drained into the diary to release his piece of soul preserved within, how it made me do those horrible things…

A flash of green light shot towards me and I just stared at it, unable to move. I heard voices growing louder, someone calling my name, and then…

_It was over._

A cold laugh echoed through my head as I found myself back in the room, lying motionless on the floor. My brain was jerking and aching and every muscle was cramped. _And you thought it couldn't come any worse_, a small voice within yelled over the noise inside my head. Overwhelmed by the memory of my life and death, I stared up at the ceiling, my body seemingly spinning.

_I couldn't believe it._

Tears were burning inside my eyes, my head growing numb eventually, the only sound was the throbbing behind my temples. It had all come back – and lying petrified on the floor, I wished it didn't happen. I wished I would not know in whose room I was lying, in whose bed I had slept, with whom I had –

I suddenly felt something squeeze my heart and the next moment I rolled onto my side, my knees pulled up to my chest, crying mercilessly. _What have I done?_ The tears came in abrupt attacks, with every heartbeat came another wave of shock and grief and terror. I felt miserable, violated and above all guilty. I couldn't believe I had fallen for the charm of the person whose future self would… kill me.

_He had killed me_. No, he would kill me, he hadn't yet, seen from his point of view. But he would. And he would become the most feared Dark wizard mankind would ever know. _He would become Lord Voldemort_. I pulled my arms around my knees and cried soundly, sobs leaving my throat with such a force my whole body was shivering.

_Oh by Merlin, why was I here? Why did I have to meet the very person who was responsible for my life's misery – and end? Why?_

I buried my face in my chest and surrendered to the sorrow weeping over me. My sobs grew silent after a while, but my head was still throbbing, and my heart…

_Oh my heart._ I could have sworn it had several scratches by now, bleeding as it was, I could have sworn I heard it being torn apart as I had seen what would become of the only one now occupying it: Tom Riddle. Why did I still feel that way when I had seen what he had done in my time, what he would do when he would leave this castle? Why was there still a small part inside screaming: _He hasn't done anything yet! _?

Because that was exactly the dilemma. He hadn't done anything yet. He was still Tom Riddle. He might be on the verge to change but that didn't mean he couldn't be stopped. Stopped. _Oh dear_… did that explain why I was here?

Before I could dive into more confusion, I heard the door open quietly behind me. I immediately grew rigid. And with a force I didn't know I still had, I got to my feet and turned around, staring at the handsome black-haired boy entering the room with a mildly confused expression on his face. Memories welled up inside, forming a cloud of rage that I was eager to let loose.

Tom Riddle closed the door and eyed me, a little concern flickering on his otherwise mask-like face. And as I glared at him, my fists clenched at my sides, I didn't see the boy Tom Riddle, but the man Lord Voldemort, whose red eyes sparkled in the dark like freshly shed blood. A wave of fear and nausea washed over me as he stepped closer to me, tilting his head.

"Ginny, what's wrong?", he asked, his voice calm.

I just eyed him, my heart yearning, my head screaming to get away, my breath quickening. Suddenly he was in front of me, his hands on my upper arms. I widened my eyes as I saw his face up close, there was still the shadow of my memory hovering above his handsome features. I let out a shriek and tried to get away.

"Don't touch me!", I screeched and backed away.

"Ginny", he asked, his expression stern, but slightly worried.

Panic grew stronger and I pushed him away, watching him stagger backwards, eyeing me with his eyes slightly wide. I then backed away, my gaze fixed on him and in my mind I was looking for an escape. But there was none and I soon found myself pressed against the cold window. Tom came slowly towards me and I felt as if my heart would explode. I pressed myself closer to the window, throwing a side glance through the glass down onto the grounds that were so far away.

As I looked back at Tom, he was suddenly in front of me again. I shrieked in surprise and tried to push past him, but he merely grabbed my wrists and pinned me to the window. I gasped, feeling new tears burning inside my eyes. It was then that I couldn't stand his gaze anymore, I couldn't stand to see the face that would turn into a snake-like mask in the oh so soon future.

"Please let me go", I whispered, feeling myself shrink as he stood in front of me, so close, so terribly close.

"What's the matter?", he replied, his voice a notch above a whisper. "What is it?"

But I merely sobbed, feeling my legs give in. I slipped to the floor, pulling Tom along with me. Sitting in front of the window, my wrists still held by Tom, I turned my head away from him, suddenly ashamed of my tears. It was then that I felt him let go of me, before his hands cupped my face and turned it back towards him, our eyes meeting.

"Talk to me, what is it?"

As I watched him, another wave of silent cries emerging my mouth, my lips trembling, while a lump formed inside my throat, I heard my heart yell in protest. I suddenly remembered his gentle touch, his soft lips, his tender voice, the memory of him holding me tightly. _If only I wouldn't know_…

"Ginny?"

I closed my eyes, tears spilling from my lashes, and tried my best to fight away the memory. My heart was right, this wasn't about the future, my former present, this was about Tom's present, the past. It didn't matter what happened in the future. _No, it didn't_… it shouldn't. As I opened my eyes again, I gazed wearily into Tom's dark ones, biting my trembling lip.

"Are you okay?", he asked, his thumbs running over my cheeks.

I drew a deep breath and tried to nod.

"What happened?"

"I –", I began, trying to find my voice. "I remembered…"

He frowned slightly. "You remembered?"

"My life…"

Comprehension washed over his face and he nodded. "I see. It's back, then? Your memory, everything?"

I nodded again, my eyes boring into his.

"Well, isn't that a good thing?", he said, a tiny smile in his voice.

Sniffing, I watched him very closely, before I nodded forcefully. _Oh no, it's not good, not good at all!_ But I swallowed the memories and leant into his hands, shooting him a crooked smile.

After that I felt my body trembling, the last remaining power draining from it. Weakness washed over me and then darkness fell.

* * *

_**A/N:** Oh well, falling from one extreme into the next, huh? Yeah, I'm sorry, no snogging this time, that might take a while before it comes back now xD Ah, the plot is thickening, I hope you're not too confused. And I hope it makes more or less sense xD_

_So, what do you think?_

_**Bianca:** I guess you have to read the last chapter again, I'm sorry, I hope you're not disappointed now - I wanted to write more snogging, but that wouldn't fit at all... and the plot, the damn plot, argh, it forced me to write this xDD But I promise, that previous snogging session was not the last! Oh and I'm glad you enjoyed it!  
_

_Thank you all for reading and reviewing!_

_**Disclaimer**: Nothing's mine._


	11. On The Verge Of A Mission

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Unfinished Business

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**Chapter 6**

I found myself back in the bed where everything bad had started.

Opening my eyes lazily, I noticed that the room was only dimly lit. Sitting up slowly, my head throbbing quietly, I looked around the room. The curtains were open and only the moonlight reflecting on the surrounding snow illuminated the darkness. The room itself was empty. Tom was nowhere to be seen. _Luckily_. I wouldn't know what to do…

_I needed a plan._

A plan to survive, fulfil my task and get rid of these nagging thoughts.

_But first I needed a hot shower!_

Getting up from bed, I then walked slowly towards the door, listening hard. As I heard nothing outside, I opened the door and quickly slipped into the next room, closing the door firmly behind me. After the light went on rather slowly, I stepped in front of the mirror – and it felt unbelievably great to see my own face in it, a face I knew, a face I had known for sixteen years.

Yes, I had my memory back. And despite all the bad things that had happened in it, I felt relieved to know who I was.

_I am Ginny Weasley, 16-year-old Hogwarts student. I am – was – in my sixth year and resided in the House of Gryffindor. _

I looked down on my chest and smiled at the sight of the Hogwarts crest and the Gryffindor lion on it. The Slytherin serpent, however, reminded me of the seriousness of my situation. I looked back into the mirror, my face pale, pronouncing the freckles on my nose and cheeks even more. Returned memory or not, I still didn't know what exactly I was doing here. Why I had been sent back when I should have died.

Voldemort had killed me and suddenly I was in the exact year his 17-year-old self would graduate from Hogwarts. Why this time? Should I really prevent Tom Riddle from becoming the Dark Lord? How should I do that?

_Well, first of all, you'd better not tell him about his future. Might give him bad ideas!_, the voice of reason suddenly said, and for the first time, I agreed. _Don't make him suspicious, act normal._

Normal. Great, very easy in the presence of the future Dark Lord!

_You also shouldn't accuse him of the things he did in your time_, the voice went on.

_Oh, that's what _I've_ been telling you all along! But you wouldn't listen! I've always said he is not to blame for anything because he hasn't done anything yet!_

_He had enchanted that diary, though…_, the voice of reason replied, being annoying again.

"Shut up, I need to think!", I muttered, staring at my reflection.

A sigh broke from my lips and I decided to clear my head by taking a long and hot shower. Undressing quickly, I then walked into the cubicle to the left, closed the door and turned on the water. Moments later, the hot water had washed away almost every bad feeling still clinging onto my body, when I suddenly heard the bathroom door open quietly.

I froze immediately, as I heard footsteps.

"Ginny?", I then heard Tom's voice ask. "Is that you?"

_Well, yeah, who did you expect? Moaning Myrtle?_ "Yes", I replied shortly.

"Just wanted to make sure", he said and I heard footsteps moving towards the door.

Biting my lip, I then said, the voice of reason mentally kicking me: "Tom?"

The footsteps stopped. "Yes?"

"I … I'm sorry", I merely said. "You had quite a bit of trouble because of me…"

He didn't reply and I half wondered if he had already left, until his quiet voice rang through the cubicle's door: "Forget it, you've gone through a lot these last days. I understand that."

_Oh Merlin, is this really the boy who'll turn into Lord Voldemort?_ "I just wanted you to know that I'm sorry. I was overwhelmed by these… new impressions and … with my memory returning… it was… well –"

"I understand", he repeated, interrupting me. "Don't blame yourself."

Could you be a little bit more evil and nasty so that it would be easier to hate you?

_Are you insane?_, the voice of reason yelled. _You should hate him already! Do not sympathise with him!_

_Excuse me? I thought you told me _not_ to blame him for what he did in my time!_, I replied angrily, kicking that stupid voice.

"Um, Ginny?", his voice then interrupted my internal discussion.

"Uh, yes?"

"I got you something to wear, some school robes. I thought you might need them."

_Damn! Don't be like that! You're making it harder for me with every second_. "Oh, thank you, Tom", I then replied briskly. "That's really nice."

"I'll be in my room, then", he said and I heard him leave.

Exhaling loudly, I leant against the cubicle's wall. Actually he was doing me a favour. He didn't scare me anymore –

_Easy to say when there's a solid wall between you!_

I shook my head and turned on the water again, relishing the warmth. After that, I left the cubicle and wrapped myself in a towel lying on the sink. Drying my skin and hair, I then slipped back into my school uniform, blouse and skirt only, and, with a last glance into the mirror, headed back into Tom's room. As I opened the door, my eyes immediately fell onto the desk by the window – yet the chair was empty.

Entering the room slowly, I looked around. No Tom. _Well, alright, makes it easier_. I then turned around to close the door – as I suddenly saw a green-silver striped tie. Moving my eyes up, I saw Tom standing very close to me, watching me with a raised eyebrow. I felt myself blush heavily and cleared my throat nervously. Clutching my sweater, socks and shoes so viciously my knuckles began to hurt, I then stepped a little back, making way for him to enter.

"Are you alright?", he asked as he went past me towards his desk, while I closed the door slowly.

"Yes, I feel better now", I said honestly, swallowing hard. _Speaking of easy…_

I watched him sit down at the table, before I walked over to the bed and put my clothes down – as I saw a bundle of school robes lying on the bed. I picked up a black robe and held it in front of my face.

"Do you think they'll fit?", I then heard Tom's voice from the other end of the room.

I lowered my hands and saw him facing me. "I guess, yeah. Thank you… again", I added with a smile that he replied with a nod before he turned back to his books.

I stared at the back of his head for a while, clutching the robe to my chest, before I closed my eyes for a second. _This is weird, yes, but you have to fight it! Fight it! _"Tom?", I then asked, watching him grew rigid as he turned around to me.

"Yes?"

"Is… is everything okay… between… us?", I asked, not really sure where those words had come from.

He eyed me for a while, tilting his head.

"I mean, I don't really know… if… there is an… _us_, you know? I'm… actually –", I stammered, turning the robe nervously in my hands as I watched him. "I'm confused, you see? More about… this… between… – well, more than I was about my being here…"

He raised an eyebrow before a small smirk broke from his lips and a tiny chuckle escaped his throat. "Everything's fine", he replied.

_And that means – ?_

"What did we do this morning?", I then blurted out, again surprised about the words spilling from my mouth.

He frowned at me, before he slowly got up the chair and walked over to me. I watched him eagerly, the robe still clutched in my hands, my mind having successfully shut out the memory of Voldemort's face whenever I saw Tom's. _Don't think of that! Don't think of that!_ He stopped right in front of me, his head still inclined. My heart began to race inside my chest.

"Do you regret it?"

_Oh, wrong question! Damn!_ "No", I said with a laugh that could easily be misinterpreted as a cough. "No, it was… well, nice", I added, my voice growing quieter, my cheeks turning crimson.

He threw me a tiny smile.

"But… well, I don't know what to think about that… do – do you?"

But he merely shrugged, while his hands moved forwards to grab the robe I was still clutching. I watched him, biting my lip, as he placed the robe back on the bed and faced me again. _What was it with me? Why did I feel so awful? _

_Well, maybe it has something to do with your memory…_

_Ah, shut up!_

It was then that I felt his hand cup my face, while our gazes locked. My mind went completely blank as he leant in to close his lips around mine, catching me utterly off guard. Before I could even respond, he drew back again, watching me with raised eyebrows, questioningly.

"Did that feel weird to you?", he asked, a smile in his voice.

"Not at all", I admitted quietly, feeling myself being absorbed into his deep, dark eyes.

The longer I watched him, the less doubts I had about this whole situation. It did feel weird, however, that my struggles seemed to be fading that quickly. Yet I couldn't care less as I smiled up at him. It was then that a loud rumble crossed the silence between us. I widened my eyes in shock as I realized it had been my stomach, yearning for food.

"I guess someone's hungry", he said matter-of-factly, a tiny smirk curling the right corner of his mouth.

I felt my cheeks redden. "I haven't eaten in days", I tried to defend myself.

"But I'm afraid you missed dinner."

"Never mind", I then said, an idea blossoming inside. "Maybe I can… distract the hunger by walking a little around the castle." _And I know just the perfect place to go to!_ "I want to see how it looks… now."

He merely nodded. I then grabbed the robe and pulled it around my shoulders, turning to leave – as he held me back by grabbing my arm gently. My eyes fell on his face again, which was set and expressionless, yet I saw something sparkle inside his dark eyes.

"The password's _gravis officium_."

I watched him with a frown. What did I need the password for? _Oh. Well, I might no longer be able to float through walls_, I then realized, not now that I was certain that Tom Riddle admitted that I was real. _Wow, this opened so many new doors_ – well, not literally as the ways I used to go were now solid walls again… but in general, this meant, _this_, Tom Riddle's acceptance, meant I had his trust…

_But did I really?_

Before I could do anything to prove my growing new conclusion, I felt my stomach rumbling again. _Time to get something to eat!_ I threw Tom a smile, nodded and turned towards the door, while he merely walked back to his desk.

"See you… later", I then said into his direction, as I opened the door.

"Be careful", he said to my surprise, without looking at me.

"Why?"

"You don't belong here", he merely said.

I eyed him with my forehead furrowed.

He then turned his head around and watched me over his shoulder. "People might notice."

_Point taken._ It surely might look suspicious… but it was after dark and most of the students should be in their dormitories anyway. Even if someone saw me, who said I didn't belong here? I wore their school uniform, didn't I? And… who said that I was fully visible for anyone by now – just because I thought I might be visible didn't mean it was true. _Oh yeah, do not trust your own conscience, that'll help…_

"Okay, I'll be careful", I shut out the voice of reason and nodded at Tom.

With that I left his room and walked slowly towards the staircase. Listening whether there were voices above, I quietly ascended the stairs and as dimness and silence greeted me, I quickly left the Head common room through the gap in the wall. I stepped onto the dark and deserted hallway, looked around and then hurried towards the stairs leading down, the rumble of my stomach growing louder with every step. I finally reached the ground level and dove into the hallway leading towards the kitchens.

Just as I reached the painting of a giant bowl of fruit, a wave of remembrance washed over me. My brothers had shown me the entrance into the kitchens, a place no student was allowed – yet my dear, mischievous brothers, of course, had known about that. I reached out and began tickling the large green pear, biting my lip to suppress the memory of my deceased brothers. As the pear squirmed and chuckled, I felt a rush of loneliness running down my spine, a feeling so intense I thought it would knock me over.

I had lost everyone. I was alone in a world, a time, I didn't belong. I had lost every family member, every loving one, all those people dearest to me, I had lost them in the Second War, as Lord Voldemort had repeatedly raged over the country. The Dark Lord in whose teenage years I had found myself after dying of his hand.

As I grabbed the huge green door handle that had appeared in front of me, I realized that there was no doubt about my mission now. A mission, I now understood, to change what went wrong, to prevent what would happen from happening. This wasn't about me, this wasn't about justifying _my_ life, this was about justifying, defending, all those lives that were taken so violently.

Inhaling deeply, I pulled open the door that had materialized as I had tickled the pear and stepped through the gap into the vast hall of the kitchens that were just below the Great Hall, the same five tables stood in the same formation as above, yet the walls were lined with fireplaces, stoves, shelves and other things one can find in a kitchen. Around the tables gathered a large group of house-elves, small creatures in the service of the castle, and were about to clean the tables from the remains of food still on them.

I stepped forward cautiously, eyeing the house-elves, my stomach rumbling louder and louder. The sound eventually made some of them look up in surprise and as they saw me, their large eyes wide and their bat-like ears raised, several bowed to me. _What a lovely greeting_, I thought with a raised eyebrow and stepped further. Even though I had known about how to enter the kitchens, I had never been alone in them before, I had always been with my brothers, who were highly welcomed whenever they decided to visit the house-elves and steal some food.

"How can we help young Miss?", one of them then squeaked.

"I was wondering", I began, looking down at them. "If there is a little bit of food left … I missed dinner, you see."

The house-elves nearest bowed lower and then gathered some plates full of bread, roast beef, pork, sausages, potatoes, soup and so much more. My stomach gave a happy rumble. I smiled at the house-elves and sat down at one of the tables. The house-elves quickly returned to their work and left me eating. I helped myself to a lot of tomato soup and bread, before turning to a plate full of mashed potatoes and sausages. I grabbed a goblet and poured myself some pumpkin juice. While I was eating for what seemed to be several people, my mind went back to the purpose of my being here.

So I was on a mission… a mission to prevent the future from happening? _How was I supposed to do that? _I couldn't change Tom Riddle, could I? I guess it was a little late for that… he was about to leave Hogwarts, so there didn't seem to be much time left. Before I should, however, think about how I could do something I had no clue about, I should maybe start with the things I knew.

What _did_ I know about Tom Riddle?

I knew, back from the days I had told his diary about my innermost feelings, that he was an orphan, raised in an orphanage in London and that he had despised the place and time he had to spend there. I guess he had told me that to raise my sympathy for him… a clever movement considering what he wanted to be done. But beside that, he hadn't talked much about himself, trying to possess me he merely listened, taking in my feelings to grow stronger. He, _his memory_ that was to say.

But what else did I know about him? What did I know about Voldemort?

There weren't many things, I realized. Everyone knew that Lord Voldemort was the most powerful Dark wizard of his time, of all time even, and that he had twice grouped many, many people around him, his Death Eaters and other Dark wizards and creatures. That was no secret. But who was the man behind the creature that Lord Voldemort had become? Well, I never had somebody to tell me about the Dark Lord and his past. Of course I knew people who knew people who would tell them anything they wanted to know, my brother Ron and his friends Harry Potter and Hermione Granger had been these people who always knew everything about what was going on. Of course I had heard them talk about it, but I never caught the important things. Sadly.

How was _I_ supposed to stop the Dark Lord from rising when I didn't know anything about him?

I guess I had a lot of work ahead of me…

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_**A/N:** And a new chapter, finally, and hopefully a little better one than the last. That was depressing, wasn't it? But the plot... you know, the damn plot... anyway, here's finally something new. I had a little trouble writing this, creating new confusion and find some new conclusions and not much action in it (BUT a tiny bit of snogging... TINY but still!) and I also was in a lack of time; I had to go to my sister's on Wednesday and on the road (or in the train xD) the whole day and today I had to go to my university, get some stuff, and also sign my appartment contract, yay I have my very first own appartment! xD_

_But now that I have time again (at least for a while) you can expect more chapters again!_

_I have to keep this short today as my niece is about to go to bed (I'm still at my sister's) and after that no pc is allowed to stay on -.-_

_So, shortly but still appreciated: THANK YOU SO MUCH every one for reading this and thank for your reviews, thanks a lot to realm-creatress for the great amount of reviews and of course Bianca, thanks!_

_Anyway, keep reading and reviewing!_

_**Discaimer**: Nothing belongs to me._


	12. A Jinx, Emotions And The Riddles

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Unfinished Business

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Chapter 7.1

It was way after midnight as I – my hunger finally satisfied – emerged from the kitchens, waving the house-elves goodbye as I went. I listened for any disturbance in the corridors but found them, luckily, completely deserted and blindingly dark. My eyes soon got used to the darkness and I began to stroll back towards the Head common room, even though I still didn't know what I was supposed to do once I was there.

Just as I reached the Entrance Hall, I heard a faint whisper that grew stronger by the second, before laughter rang through the hallway. I quickly dove behind a statue and pressed myself against the wall – just in time as a small group of dark clothed figures went past, seemingly chatting about something they found highly amusing. The laughter soon faded as the group of people vanished into the darkness, leading down into the dungeons. _Slytherins_.

What were they still doing here and why were they all wearing hoods?

Oh dear… could it be? Memory rushed over me, images of people levitating screaming Muggles over their hooded and masked heads, shrill laughter filled the air. _Death Eaters._ Could it be that Tom had already grouped people around him, his followers? That meant I had even less time than I thought I would have…

I slowly emerged from the dark niche and hastily ran up the stairs to the landing of the Head common room. Reaching the portrait of the wizard with the pointy hat and large nose who was sleeping deeply in his frame, loud snores erupting from underneath a bushy beard, I looked around for anything or anyone that should not be on the corridors at this time of night.

Still looking left and right, my hands flew to the portrait and, without thinking, I tried to reach through it – before my fingers scraped on old canvas. A muffled snore rang to my ears.

"Oi, watch your hands!", the wizard mumbled, looking sleepily at me, blinking.

"Sorry", I said quietly, withdrawing my hands. "Um, _gravis officium_."

The wizard nodded, waving a hand impatiently, before yawning widely, and the portrait swung open. I quickly climbed through it and found myself standing in the dimly lit common room. As I slowly walked past the couches and armchairs towards the staircases, I suddenly saw a movement to my right. Staring at one of the couches, I noticed a dark lump in the shadows.

Squinting my eyes, I carefully walked closer until I saw that the lump was in fact a person, crouched in one of the corners of the largest couch, head lying motionless against its back, legs outstretched, one hand hanging numbly from the armrest, whilst the other – the movement I had seen – ran long, slender fingers through thick dark hair.

I let out a little gasp as I noticed Tom's crouched form in front of me.

"Tom?", I asked cautiously, walking closer. "What are you doing here?"

He had noticed me too, as his dark, sunken eyes moved quickly towards me. He lowered his hand and tried to straighten his position as a wince ran through his body.

"Tom?", I asked again, finally reaching him and sitting down beside him, watching him closely. "What's wrong?"

It was then that I saw the blood running from his hair line down his cheek.

"Oh my goodness! What happened?", it emerged from my throat, my eyes wide. _Not many hours ago he had been fine!_

Tom merely shook his head, a movement that seemed to cause him even more pain. His hand reached up to his head again and as he lowered it, his fingers tips were covered in blood.

"Damn it, Tom, what happened?", I urged, kneeling beside him on the couch, staring at him in utter shock.

"Nothing", he murmured, his voice quiet.

"So bleeding from the head is nothing?", I shrieked.

"Keep your voice down, please", he whispered.

"Tell me what happened."

"No", he merely said, his gaze wandering towards the windows.

"Tom!"

He slowly turned his head to me, his dark eyes watching me closely, a thin line of blood running past his eyebrow.

"Why do you care?", he then asked quietly, seemingly surprised.

"Why do I care?", I echoed, frowning. "Damn it, because I do care! I'm –" _Oh my god, I did care for him. I was actually worried about him… I shouldn't, but I was. _"I'm… worried, Tom. You were totally fine when I left and now I come back and see you bleeding on the couch! Please tell me what happened."

He watched me for a moment, before he lowered his gaze and stared at his bloody fingertips.

"Just an argument", he then said, his other hand numbly reaching inside his robes, before it emerged clutching his wand. He pointed it at his hair line and, without muttering a spell, a flash of light erupted from its tip, yet as soon as the light had hit his wound, it didn't heal, as I thought it would, but began bleeding more severely. Tom sighed. "Stupid jinx…"

"Who jinxed you?", I asked and suddenly had a feeble idea who did it, even though it was weird to expect his own followers to jinx their leader. Except –

Maybe he wasn't their leader yet. Maybe the Death Eaters didn't exist in the way they would later. _Maybe they were still only class mates having a little fun…_

Tom shook his head. "Doesn't matter… I should have seen this coming", he mumbled, more to himself. "Don't worry", he added, looking at me as if he was surprised that I was worried at all.

What had happened? Did his fellows jinx him for the fun of it? _An argument, eh?_ Now my curiosity was wide awake. Why was there an argument between the future Dark Lord and his minions? Maybe because they didn't like the aspect of following someone? Could it be that the future Death Eaters didn't care about a leader? Or maybe there weren't any Death Eaters after all and Tom merely had a fight with a fellow classmate, innocently, no future leadership, Dark magic etc. involved.

Yet as I watched the blood run from his hair down his face, it did feel like Dark magic. A jinx that was immune against any counter-jinx? Normal was something else. I bent closer to him, watching his wound closely. There seemed to be a small scratch just beside his hairline, small, yet blood continued to pour out of it in thick droplets. As I leant back to look around for anything that could help, I felt his stare on me.

"Why are you doing this?", he asked, his voice serene.

I locked eyes with him. He seemed to be highly sceptical. "Do you actually think I'll let you bleed to death? Don't forget that my existence depends on you", I added in a whisper. Yet in that moment I didn't care about whether or not I faded into invisibility again, I didn't even think about the words I had uttered. I didn't care about me, I cared about _him_. And the weirdest part, I didn't know why. His weakness, or at least his present state, made me feel different about everything I thought about before.

Even though I didn't want him to become the Dark Lord, I didn't want him to die or suffer; I still tried to convince myself that I could change his near destiny in a different way. Why not try it the caring way… and to my utter surprise, that wasn't too hard after all.

He watched me closely, his eyes small, the blood on his face making him look tired and vulnerable. Again I found myself in disbelief that I stared at the young man who would become Lord Voldemort.

"May I borrow this?", I asked after a while, nodding at the hand that held his wand.

He looked down before he eyed me doubtfully. "Why?"

"I want to help you", I simply said. "And, well, I want to test if I can still… do it, you know?"

A tiny flicker of a grin crossed his mouth, before he winced again. But to my utter surprise, he handed me his wand. I thanked him and took it, trying to get over the shock of how much trust he put into me. Holding his wand, I then flicked it once and conjured a handkerchief out of thin air. He watched me, one of his eyebrows rising in mild astonishment.

I smiled at him, before I poured water onto the handkerchief from the tip of the wand. I then gave him back his wand and folded the handkerchief, before I leant closer to him, eyeing his wound. His eyes darted up, staring at me as I slowly moved my hand holding the folded handkerchief towards the top of his head. He winced quite heavily as the fabric touched his wound, yet the blood seemed to stop running from the scratch and gathered in the once white handkerchief. Pressing it carefully on his hairline, my eyes flew back to his.

"You shouldn't do this", he muttered, his lips barely moving.

"But I want to –"

"No, you shouldn't. You shouldn't _care_", he went on, his eyes boring into his. "I don't understand why you should do that."

"I told you –"

"No!"

I frowned at him. _Well, what did you expect from an orphan who never had someone who cared about him?_ "Tom, don't… don't fight it, just…" I didn't know what to say, I had thought he would trust me but apparently I was far away from that. He was too occupied by prejudices and suspicions, and I couldn't blame him for that. I carefully lifted the handkerchief from his wound and used another corner of it to wipe away the blood on his face.

He was still watching me, his jaw set, his eyes, however, moving along my face. As I reached his jaw line, I lowered the handkerchief and looked at him, tilting my head. Just as I wanted to point out his clean face, I saw a new thin line of blood emerging from underneath his hair. Stupid jinx! Without asking, I grabbed his wand and pointed it at the wound.

"Don't!", he merely hissed but I had already flicked the wand and conjured a large band-aid out of thin air that pressed itself onto the scratch, keeping the blood from spilling. His eyes moved up, furrowing his forehead, before he looked back at me, his bloody fingertips running along his hairline, apparently searching for new blood.

"Sometimes", I said with a small smile. "There are better ways to fool a jinx than a counter-jinx."

"Thank you", I then heard him whisper, his eyes fixed on his fingertips.

I smiled at him and wiped the last remaining blood off his face, before I lowered the handkerchief and raised my other hand to gently touch his pale cheek. His eyes shot up to me again, his face expressionless.

"Will you tell me now what had happened?", I then urged, my hand still resting on his cheek.

"I already told you", he replied and jerked his head away from my hand, bending forwards, his hands clutched in his lap. I could see a shiver running through his body.

I lowered my hands and leant back a little, watching his profile closely. Following the plan inside my head, I then leant forwards and pulled my arms around him. He stiffened immediately, his head slowly turning to me, his eyes stern, yet surprised. I leant my head against his shoulder, closing my eyes and mumbled: "I'm just worried…"

And even though I had told myself to do anything to keep him from thinking Dark thoughts, anything to keep him from following his destined path, I found myself unable to think of that as I hugged him. It sure had been a movement to surprise him, yet as I had uttered the words, I knew I really felt them. _I was worried. I did care…_ Plan or not, it seemed to be easier to convince myself to get close to him than I had thought. _It felt… right._

And as I leant against him, I felt him relaxing slowly. His hands eventually grabbed my shoulders and pulled me a little away from him, our eyes locking, and it was then that one of his hands gently stroked my cheek, his slender index finger running along my cheekbone. Swallowing, feeling myself being absorbed into his eyes again, I couldn't help but lean closer to him.

Leaning against the back of the couch again, he soon pulled me onto his lap, his hands holding my face firmly, while my hands wandered up his chest. Mesmerized by his dark eyes, I felt myself being drawn to him, and even though I was fully aware of what I was doing and who I was sitting on, no voice inside urged me to stop.

Yet just as our lips collided, I felt a jerk running through my body. My hands were pressed flat on Tom's chest, his heart beating against them, as I suddenly felt the ground beneath me rumble and before I knew it the world began to spin, faster and faster and –

Then I found myself on a deserted road leading up to a beautiful old mansion sitting on a hill, a house almost black against the blue sky.

Before I could take a look around, I saw Tom's face next to me, yet I could only see his profile as if I was somehow sitting on his shoulder, seemingly shrunken to an abnormally small size. His jaw was set and he was walking quickly up the road towards the front door of the house ahead. I continued watching the scene from past his right ear. As he ascended the steps towards the door, I saw him reach out his hand and knock on the oaken door.

After a few moments the door swung open and a girl in a maiden's uniform appeared, her hair strictly pulled back, her apron flawless. She looked at Tom with a questioning look. "Yes? How can I help you?"

"I'd like to see Tom Riddle", I heard him say. _Tom Riddle? What –_

"Do you have an appointment?", the maid asked, eyeing Tom suspiciously.

"No, I just happen to be in the area and would really like to see him", Tom said, rather politely despite the maid's stern gaze.

"Why would you –" But the maid stopped and I saw her gaping at Tom. I saw Tom's face twisting into a small smile. "Very well", the maid then said, backing away from the door, holding it open. "Come in."

Tom nodded and went past the maid who closed the door behind him. He waited politely, before the maid hurried past him across the long corridor, then stopped at a door to the right.

"He is in the drawing room", she said. "Let me introduce you first. What was your name, sir?"

"Tom Marvolo Riddle", he replied, causing the maid to stare at him in sheer disbelief, yet still she nodded and entered the room she was standing in front of.

Moments of silence passed, only muffled voices were heard through the door of the room the maid had vanished into. Suddenly there was silence and the maid stepped onto the hallway again, bowing a little to Tom. He walked towards her, inclined his head to her and entered the drawing room; a large room full of bookshelves, a fireplace, high windows, a lot of paintings and busts sitting on small pillars. In an armchair by the fireplace sat a middle-aged man, jet-black hair, narrowed eyes and a truly handsome face.

The man got up from the chair and stared at Tom – and as I looked from Tom's profile towards the man, I couldn't help but stare as well. The man beside the fireplace was the spitting image of Tom, with just a few lines of age crossing his handsome features. The boy and man stared at each other before the older one broke the silence.

"Who are you?", he asked with a cold voice. "The maid said your name was –"

"Tom Marvolo Riddle, that's right", Tom interrupted, nodding, even though his voice sounded as cold as the other man's.

"Tom Mar –", the man tried to repeat Tom's name. "No, that can't be your name!"

"But it is and I am afraid that I am your –"

"No!", the older Riddle said, clutching the back of the armchair in support. "No, I refuse to believe that!"

"I am your son", Tom said, his voice rising, gritting his teeth.

The other man stared at him, an expression of utter disbelief, shock and pure loathing spreading on his handsome face.

"I do not have a son!", he merely said after a moment of silence, his voice icy. "And now I want you to leave my house! You are not welcome here!"

But Tom didn't move.

"Get out!"

I felt Tom shifting a little, his hand vanishing inside the pocket of his robes.

"Get out, you freak! I've had enough of you people! Did _she_ tell you to come here? Didn't she get enough, that gruesome, nutty woman? Did she order you here to destroy my life even more?"

"My mother is dead", I heard Tom's quiet voice. The older Riddle froze, even though his eyes were gleaming in satisfaction. "And I came here today to meet the person who sealed her… and my… fate."

"Your… _mother_ was a freak!", the other man bellowed. "She was insane! And the world can be happy that she's gone! You should not have come here, boy!"

I felt Tom stiffening. His jaw was clenched, his eyes narrowed as he stared at the man who was his father.

"Leave immediately or I'll have you removed!"

Tom didn't move.

"GET OUT!", the man bellowed and quickly turned around to grab a musket hanging above the fireplace. He then pointed the barrel directly at Tom's chest whose eyes darted from the gun towards the face of the other Riddle.

Suddenly the door burst open and an elderly couple entered the drawing room. Tom turned his head to look at a short woman and an old man whose black hair was thinning and tinged with grey. They both gaped at Tom, before their gazes wandered between him and the older Riddle.

"What is going on, Tom?", the short woman asked the man by the fireplace. "Who is this?", she added with a frightened glance at Tom.

"Is this –", the eldest Riddle began, staring at Tom with his eyes wide. "Oh my goodness, is this the freak's kid?"

I felt Tom growing rigid, his hand seemingly clenched around the wand inside his pocket.

"How dare you come here?", the old man barked at him. He and his wife joined the man by the fireplace, all three of them staring at Tom in a very hostile way. "Get out of my house!"

Tom merely stared back at them, his lips pressed together, his eyes as dark as ever. I felt hatred mixed with disappointment and frustration boil inside me, and as I watched Tom's profile, I realized that I was merely mirroring the feelings inside him.

Suddenly voices grew louder and the scene became blurry. "You are not welcome here!" echoed through the room. "GET OUT!" burst through the air. "FREAK!" rang in my ears. Then there was a cloud of green light, before silence fell over the drawing room. I saw in a blur how three bodies fell to the ground without a sound. The scene became blurrier with the second and then walls rushed by and –

I was back on the couch in the Head common room.

Shaking my head from the dizziness, I looked around in confusion. I saw myself kneeling on the couch while Tom Riddle stood in front of it, staring down at me, his eyes wide, his lips slightly apart. He was trembling from head to toe, his fists clenched at his sides. I gaped up at him as I realized what I had just witnessed.

Did he know what I had seen? Was that – Had I seen into his memory?

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_**A/N**: Another chapter just as promised. I had to split it up again, so tomorrow or so will be chapter seven part two._

_So, how did you like my try on what really happened in the Riddle house?_

_Thank you again for your lovely reviews, they ALL make my day, so keep them coming xDD  
Thank you **Bianca**, even though I miss your essay-reviews I understand that school is a little bit more important xD Oh and I'm glad I could cheer you up!  
**realm-creatress**: Tragedy, huh? Well, it will be tragic but I don't think there'll be a tragic end, though xDD Yeah, cryptic xD Anyway, thank you, I'm glad you like it and don't worry, I don't like tragedies either, and I'm the author, I only write what I like xD  
**Tabasco**: Aww, thank you so much! I apreciate such kind words!_

_**Disclaimer**: I wish I would own a certain black-haired boy, but well..._

_**Up Next**: Wait and see xDDD And review, please, review! Thanks!_


	13. Plesant Daggers And A New Dilemma

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Unfinished Business

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_A/N: Warning! Slightly mature content ahead!_

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_I was back on the couch in the Head common room._

_Shaking my head from the dizziness, I looked around in confusion. I saw myself kneeling on the couch while Tom Riddle stood in front of it, staring down at me, his eyes wide, his lips slightly apart. He was trembling from head to toe, his fists clenched at his sides. I gaped up at him as I realized what I had just witnessed._

_Did he know what I had seen? Was that – Had I seen into his memory?_

**Chapter 7.2**

"Tom?", I asked after a while, my voice weak.

"What happened?", he asked instead, his voice a mere whisper, his lips barely moving as he stared down at me. "Why did you… did you… ?" His voice broke and he continued staring at me, his whole body shaking violently, his fists clenched so tightly, his knuckles were turning white.

"I – I don't know why… I just… and then we… and… was that really your father?", I whispered.

I heard him inhale sharply, before he closed his eyes and pressed his lips together as if trying to keep whatever wanted to get out inside. As he opened his eyes again, he turned towards one of the high windows, watching the snow storm outside lashing against the fogged glass. He placed one hand against the window frame and lowered his head.

"Yes", he said barely audible.

"What a rude man", I mumbled back, slowly getting up from the couch. "But…", I began as I recalled the last images I had seen. "But… you… _killed_ him, didn't you?", I asked, my body trembling as bad as his, my voice so quiet I, myself, had trouble to understand the words against the hissing storm.

Tom closed his eyes and wiped his face with his free hand. "I don't want to talk about that", he said after a while.

I slowly walked over to him. Alarm gripped the back of my hair and rushed down my spine. _Alarm? Fear?_ Did I really feel afraid of Tom Riddle because I witnessed how he had killed his father and grandparents? No. Not entirely. There was something else as I walked closer to him. _Compassion_.

Hardly breathing, I then stepped beside him, my hand gently touching his back. I felt him stiffening under my touch, yet he didn't turn around or moved away. I watched his pale reflection in the dark window, how he stood there, his eyes closed, his expression unreadable, his mouth a thin line. My hand ran over his shoulder towards his neck, until my fingers reached his cheek. He turned his head slightly towards me, his eyes empty.

"Why did you go there?", I asked, my hand resting on his cheek as I stood beside him.

"I –", he began, but soon interrupted himself again, squeezing his eyes shut for a moment. After inhaling sharply, he said: "I was just looking for a… _family_…" His voice was only a silent whisper against the noise of the storm outside, yet it was clear that he had pronounced the word family in a quite disappointed way. He then stared out of the window, unblinkingly.

Before I knew it and before I could think about it, I pulled my arms around him and hugged him tightly. His left arm eventually closed around me and I felt his head leaning against mine. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him, despite all emotions about him killing the Muggles that were his father and grandparents. They had treated him with such hostility, he was even threatened by a musket held by his own father, and I really couldn't blame him.

_Oh my._ I sympathized with him!_ Worse, I didn't feel sorry for the murdered Muggles._ I felt… _oh dear_, was this the aftermath of having been in Tom's memory or were those my own thoughts? My own feelings of hatred against the people who had called Tom and his mother freaks just because the latter was a witch?

"I didn't mean to kill them…", I suddenly heard his quiet voice in my ear. Holding onto him, I felt a shiver running through his body. "Of course, I was angry and disappointed and shocked, but… I didn't mean to… it just… -"

"Happened", I finished for him, inclining my head to look at him.

Our gazes met and he nodded, his eyes dark and hollow, his face even paler than usual.

"Don't blame yourself", I said, and as the words were out I realized how far I've gone. How far from my original plan. How far from not sympathizing with the future Dark Lord. I was actually defending his actions, defending the murder he had committed! I couldn't believe it and the voice of reason wasn't too fond of my words either.

His response, however, was much warmer than I had thought. A tiny smile crept up his face and soon after he had pulled both his arms around me, pressing me against him, his head tilted, our noses only inches away. And before I could do anything against it, I was pulled deeper and deeper into his eyes, his intense glare, the depth of the darkness inside him, as our lips collided.

We quickly found ourselves back on the couch, our arms intertwined, and our hands running through the other's hair. Pushed into the cushions, I lay under Tom, nibbling on his lips, my mind numb, the voice of reason yet again silenced by outrage. I couldn't care less. _I was stuck in this time, why should I not enjoy it?_

Just as I felt his hands run along the rim of my blouse, I heard footsteps coming closer and suddenly an angry "TOM!" cut through the air. I heard Tom sighing in irritation, as he put his head on my chest. I couldn't help but smirk as he straightened himself and looked over the armrest towards the staircases. Loud footsteps echoed through the room, before he climbed off me and held out his hand for me to grab.

I did so without hesitation. And so we stood beside the couch, both watching the blonde girl coming down the steps. Before she could say anything, Tom dragged me past her, throwing her a glower and descending the stairs. I looked over my shoulder at the Head Girl who glared after us with her mouth open.

"I'LL TELL DIPPET!", she shouted after us.

"Say hello from me!", Tom shouted back, grinning at me, just as we reached the landing leading to his room.

Ignoring the short disturbance, he opened the door and pushed me gently inside, his lips already glued to mine again. We stumbled, mildly hooked into each other, towards the bed and undressed while we went. My blouse got lost somewhere between the closet and the end of the bed, while his robes were already hanging over the back of the chair by the window, his shirt shortly after accompanying them. Tom's hands rested on the small of my back as he guided me gently towards the bed.

I let out a gasp as we both fell onto the bed, his weight momentarily knocking all air out of my body. I soon recovered as my hands cupped his face while my lips sucked on his hungrily. His tongue eventually found its way into my mouth and we continued kissing as if there was nothing else. And before long, I forgot about everything that had been on my mind several moments ago.

Moaning softly, I snuggled into him, as we, several moments later, lay beside each other, his hands still running along my naked body whilst my hands remained firmly around his face, my lips closing around his, before heat made us roll around in the bed, losing the bed sheets on the way. I then found myself on top of him, both arms tightly wrapped around him, our chests pressed against each other.

Tom shifted beneath me, before he grabbed my waist and pulled himself up so that we sat on the bed, his legs stretched below me while I sat on his lap, one leg on each side of him. I continued kissing him passionately, my hands running through his hair. In the heat of the moment my thumb glided over his band-aid, but he merely winced and buried his face in my shoulder, kissing my collarbone. I leant against him as he shifted continually beneath me, re-igniting the fire within.

Moments, in which I thought I was floating, when everything around turned into a pleasant darkness, passed by eventually, before Tom collapsed into the cushions, panting slightly. I crashed beside him, my hands flat on his heaving chest, my breath equally short. I kissed his chest and snuggled against him, while he pulled an arm around my shivering body. He then waved a hand and summoned the bed sheets onto the bed again, before they covered our naked bodies cosily.

I soon felt myself drift into a deep sleep in which I was first haunted by Tom's ever-bleeding scratch, that suddenly began to talk in a high-pitched voice, then there was a group of hooded figures levitating house-elves over their heads, in between there were plates circling through the air, spilling what lay on top of them on piles of clothes and then six or seven Toms stood in a circle, staring at each other, some with raised wands, some with muskets, others with quills and sausages in their hands. I shifted in my sleep before a jerk ran through my body.

I awoke lying on my side, facing the open room that was dimly lit. The bed sheets were wrapped around my body tightly. My hands felt over the bed, yet next to me – was nothing but a bloodstain on the pillow. I shrieked and sat up quickly, looking around the room for any sign of Tom. My gaze just wandered frantically over the closet as the door opened quietly and Tom, a towel wrapped around his lower body, entered the room, his hair wet, looking at me mildly surprised.

I hurriedly climbed off the bed, the bed sheets still wrapped around me, and stumbled so quickly towards him, that I almost knocked him over as I tripped over the sheets. He caught me with a startled smile on his pale face, as I fell, arms wide, against his chest.

"Hey, what's wrong?", he asked quietly, guiding me back to the bed.

"I just… I… the blood…", I stammered, pressing myself against him.

"The band-aid got lost, that's all", he explained, tilting his head as I looked up at him in utter shock. "I'm fine", he chuckled slightly, kissing my forehead.

I clang onto him. And realized that, in that very moment, I had crossed the point of no return. I had fallen for his charm, I was worried sick when he wasn't there (which had only been minutes or even less), I cared too much for him. _Way too much._ Yet I had successfully shut out the voice of reason that became merely a nagging whisper in the back of my head.

Oh my god, this shouldn't happen! I shouldn't feel like this! Not with him, not with whom he will become. _Nice, who needed that stupid voice of reason when there was the own conscience…_

I leant back a little and watched Tom closely, his dark eyes darting over my face. I tried hard to see anything in his handsome features that could make me think differently, something within that I hadn't yet seen, an evil spark that wanted to break free, something, _anything,_ that could bring me back to reality, that stupid reality, that ruined everything!

_But…_

Under the protest of conscience and voice of reason I had to admit that there was no such thing. There was nothing evil about Tom – or that was to say, I didn't care if there was. Once again he had persuaded me, even though I was now fully aware of it and didn't even attempt to fight it. _I was doomed_ – and yet I couldn't care less. A new dilemma had found me. Tearing me into pieces. A sacrifice I was willing to make as I looked up into Tom's dark eyes.

My hands ran slowly over his chest, before I looked away, nodding. _Now that we clarified this feeling inside, we must now pay attention to not go over the top. Do not become an annoyance because that might possibly bring you back on his irritation list. Step one: do not cling onto him like that!_

I leisurely lowered my hands and stepped back a little, smiling at him. _Good girl!_ He watched me for a while.

"Are you alright?", he asked, eyeing me, certainly having witnessed my inner conflict.

I nodded. "Yes. Yes, I'm sorry, I just woke up from this weird dream and –"

"It's okay", he said, his hands resting on my waist. "That was kind of cute."

_Now you think my protectiveness is cute… you wait, mister!_

I threw him a broader smile and leant up to kiss his cheek. He held me for a while before he let go as well, walking past me to his closet. I returned to the bed, snuggled into the bed sheets and watched him dress. He then walked to his desk, packed his bag and pulled his robes on. Fully dressed, his hair magically dried and combed, his face pale, his eyes, however, sparkling of what looked like pleasure, he walked back to the bed, propped onto his arms and leant over me.

I tilted my head and bit my lip, as he raised one hand and gently touched my face. I moved forwards, and soon his lips closed around mine, his touch sending pleasant daggers through my blood. He soon after moved back again, straightening himself, while I sat up, my head inclined.

"What are yours plans for today?", he asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed, eyeing me in an interested way.

"Well, I don't really have plans, but I'd like to get outside again. I've always loved snow…"

"Me too, it makes everything so pure", he admitted, his choice of words definitely ringing in my ears.

I nodded half-heartedly and looked past him towards the windows whose curtains he had pulled open after he had packed his bag. A beautiful blue sky greeted the snowy tops of the surrounding mountains.

"I guess you'll need those then", he said and, as I looked back at him, flicked his wand twice to conjure a scarf and gloves out of thin air; both items in the colours of Gryffindor, gold and scarlet. I was mildly surprised to see that he had noticed that I was a Gryffindor.

"Thank you", I said with a smile and picked up scarf and gloves. "How do you feel about me being in Gryffindor?", I then added, turning the striped scarf in my hands, watching him closely.

"I don't care", he shrugged.

"Back in my time, I had a lot of… arguments with people from Slytherin. There was basically always war between Gryffindor and Slytherin, not only in Quidditch", I said with a faint smile as I remembered how my school days had been like.

"You see that that might not always be the case", he replied with a tiny smirk, tilting his head.

"True", I agreed, chuckling slightly.

"I have to go now", he then said, looking towards the door. "Be careful on your trips, will you?"

_I wonder what you're more afraid of, that something would happen to me or that I would run around and tell everyone who you really are? Not that you would know what I knew about you, eh?_ But still… this carefulness was a little eerie. _Don't be suspicious, he cares for you, just admit it!_ Well, okay.

"I will", I said and nodded.

"Maybe –", he began, his gaze wandering over the bed sheets.

"Yes?", I asked as he didn't seem to finish.

"Maybe we could meet for… lunch", he said, his voice only a notch above a whisper. "Or something."

I smiled at his slight uncertainty. "Lunch? Like… in the Great Hall?"

"Well, we can't, can we?", he countered, looking up. "I still don't know what people might think about your… sudden appearance."

"I thought about that too… maybe I can say I'm an exchange student –"

"Wearing the Hogwarts uniform?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Right, bad idea. I actually didn't think about that matter _too_ much, to be honest. Hmm, or maybe I can say I was ill for a long time and finally returned –"

"Sounds better, but teachers might notice that you haven't been here before that 'long time' either", he said, tilting his head. "But as long as you don't bump into any staff member, you might be safe."

"I'll try to avoid them", I declared with a grin. _Nothing's easier than that when you grew up with the Weasley twins!_

Tom nodded and quickly leant forward to kiss me. Hovering close to my face, he then said: "Enjoy your trip. I'll be in the library after lunch."

He then got up the bed, grabbed his bag and left the room with a last look at me, before I was left in utter silence, only the nagging sound of the voice of reason echoing inside my head.

_Alright, alright, to make you shut up_… _how about I'll follow him today?_ _See who he's talking to, who his friends are, maybe I could even question some people about him._ Because I still had to learn a lot more about the boy Tom Riddle before I could successfully stop him from becoming the man Lord Voldemort.

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_**A/N**: And the second and last part of chapter 7!_

_I hope the plot is thickening xD  
Well, I guess some of you couldn't care less, eh, as long as there's enough snogging? xDDD_

_Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this and please tell me what you think! Thanks!_

_**Bianca**: Yeah, teachers suck! Hope this could cheer you up again a little! I'm btw glad that you liked my try on the Riddle house incident. Hehe, yeah, I wanted to make Tom Riddle Sn. as bad as possible so that EVERYONE would have wanted to kill him xD Even though he is already described as being arrogant, anti-magic, snobbish and rude, so, yeah, I think I was quite authentic! And yep, Tom kinda trusts Ginny; I think he's past his doubts that she might be someone who wants him something bad, well, what he doesn't know……. Right? xD Anyway, thanks for your review, I've been looking forward to that!_

_**Kehlen**: I am really glad your enjoyed my variant, thank you very much! About Tom's uncle, yeah, I'm re-reading HBP too (and you're right, he first goes to the Gaunts and then "visits" his father and grandparents) and I think I'll put Morfin in there too, this memory that Ginny had seen was only a snippet of what happened that day, so maybe we'll see more of that later. Thanks again!_

_**Disclaimer**: I wonder why I'm still writing this? This is a fanfiction, surely I won't make money off it, now will I?_


	14. Controlling Tom And Charming Tom

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Unfinished Business

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Chapter 8

After Tom had left, I climbed out of the bed clumsily and picked up my clothes that were spread all over the room. Clutching them, I then sneaked quickly into the bathroom, took a long shower, got dressed and returned to the room, where I pulled on my robes, shoes, scarf and gloves, before I exited and silently ascended the stairs, listening whether there was movement above. As there was no sound whatsoever, I climbed through the portrait hole and left the Head common room.

The hallways were deserted, a pale sun casting beams through the windows onto the cold walls and floor. The snow storm from last night had caused a terrible cold within the castle; windowsills were laden with mountains of fresh snow and, after a peek outside, the surroundings looked as if covered by a plain white blanket. And I was grateful for the scarf and gloves Tom had conjured for me.

Pulling my robe closer around my body, I quickly descended into the Entrance Hall, and, after avoiding a group of students exiting the Great Hall, dashed outside through the open Entrance doors. The grounds of Hogwarts were covered in so much snow; students having to get to the greenhouses had already made paths through the white element, their footsteps almost invisible in the narrow passes leading from the doors onto the grounds.

I decided to take a walk towards the lake and took one of the smaller narrow passes heading to the Quidditch pitch that soon parted into an even smaller path leading around the castle towards the lake. I reached the frozen lake and inhaled the clear air rushing from the mountains deeply. For a moment everything lingering on my mind vanished into thin air, the cold air cleansing every inch of my body and soul. And so I stood for a moment by the lake, my eyes closed, taking in everything around me.

Even though this part of the lake was the most solitary place in Hogwarts, it was then that I heard voices echoing over the lake from the green houses. Classes were over as it seemed. _Was it lunch already?_ I stared up into the sky, looking for a sign, but the sun was firmly hid behind thick, light grey clouds, that made the world look even whiter. I looked around for anyone intruding but the voices were gone again and I remained by the edge of the lake, an eerie silence rushing through my ears.

I sighed loudly and slowly walked back towards the castle, the rim of my robes already soaked through, my face numb from the cold wind. Rubbing my gloved hands, I looked around the snowy grounds. _What a beautiful place… and what a terrible fate is waiting ahead _… I remembered images of burning trees, blackened grass, shattered glass by the greenhouses, the stands of the Quidditch pitch destroyed, smoke and fire erupting from the castle's windows, destruction, mayhem and terror waltzing over everything that was now covered in peaceful snow.

The near future did not look good.

As I reached the oaken front doors, I felt something rush down my spine. _It is in your hands. In your hands to prevent anything bad from happening to this castle._ I stopped and looked up into the grey sky, as my heart leapt against my ribcage. _What a burden…_

Lowering my eyes, I made a decision. _Whatever it takes to save the world I am fond of, whatever it takes to stop anyone willing to destroy the means of Magic and peace, I have to be ready! I _am_ ready. _As another shiver ran down my spine, I blinked repeatedly, the weight inside my heart growing. _I have to be ready… ready to do whatever it takes to stop him. Whatever it takes?_ Whatever

I nodded to myself. _Whatever._

_And I'll start right now!_, I thought as I saw a group of people emerging from the castle, trailing away into the direction of the Forest that usually lay under a cloud of utter darkness, today, however, the snow took away most of its threatening appeal. I slowly followed the group of students whose green and silver scarves were glooming in the snow.

They headed straight to the edge of the Forest, past the place where Hagrid's hut would be decades later, ignoring the hills of snow in their way. I didn't know why I followed them, but something told me to do so; something about their appearance – not only the fact that they were Slytherins – but everyone wandering off towards the Forbidden Forest seemed suspicious.

Trying to stay in a safe distance – which proved difficult in the plain field of snow around me – I watched how they soon vanished behind the trees of the Forest. As I reached the edge of it, I pressed myself against the nearest tree trunk and snaked around – as I saw the group coming to a stop. Quickly hiding behind the tree, I listened hard.

"He's late", one of them said.

"Again", added another.

"You would think this might be more important than Christmas decorations", a third voice said.

"Can't say I expected him to reveal his true abilities once he had been promoted Head Boy", yet another voice said, causing me to frown.

Holding my breath, I dared to peek around the trunk to see four people standing in a circle, facing each other, hands deep in their pockets, scarves tightly around their necks, the hoods of their robes only half-covering their faces. _Were they waiting for Tom? So the Death Eaters did already exist?_

Just as I peered around the tree trunk, I heard heavy footsteps from the edge of the Forest. I gasped and quickly leapt around the tree, hiding behind a snow-covered bush. And there he was indeed… Tom Riddle, his pale face hidden underneath a black hood that he pulled off once he saw the other four boys. He glanced over his shoulder before he joined them, his expression unreadable.

"What took you so long, Riddle?", one of them asked, equally pulling off his hood, revealing short, dirty brown hair and a stubby nose.

"Unlike you, Avery, I do have other things to do", Tom replied in an unnaturally cold voice.

"Anyway, how are things?", another boy to Tom's right asked, his hair as black as Tom's, his face, however, even bonier and ill-looking.

"I didn't have the time to continue our planning, Christmas keeps me busy", Tom said, a little calmer, rummaging through his pockets.

"Why don't you leave that to the Mudblood, anyway?", the boy opposite Tom, tall, with a face like a monkey, said.

"It's called Head Boy _and_ Girl, Nott!", Tom snapped. "Dippet keeps a close look on us and you know how Dumbledore tries to find the smallest hint that I might be occupied with… other stuff."

"Dumbledore can't do anything, he's only the Transfiguration teacher and Dippet has his own mind", the boy with the stubby nose, who seemed to be called Avery, said.

"Dippet is stupid", the monkey-faced boy named Nott spat out. "They are all stupid!"

"You shouldn't underestimate them, Dumbledore has more powers than you think", Tom stated, much to the surprise of the fellow boys.

"And I thought, you of all would hate Dumbledore, Riddle", the fourth boy said, his head still hidden under the hood of his robes, yet there were strands of blonde hair leaking from it, framing a pointy face.

"I do, Malfoy!", Tom said irritated. "Yet you should never misjudge your enemy!"

"Hear, hear", the other black-haired boy said with a wicked grin. "But you shouldn't be afraid of your enemies either, Riddle!"

"I'm not, Lestrange!", Tom bellowed, his hand shooting to his pockets. "And you better stop saying that –"

"Or else what, Riddle?", the other boy named Lestrange said, his hand also twitching inside his pocket, a long red line looming on his bony cheek.

I saw Tom narrowing his eyes, the scratch at his hairline shimmering red in dimness of the Forest. The boy to his right stared at him unblinkingly.

"Guys!", Avery interrupted, holding up his hands, his voice squeaky. "We've had enough of your arguments!"

"Shut up, Avery!", Tom and Lestrange both bellowed at the stubby-nosed boy.

"Now that we cleared that", Nott said, sounding bored. "How's our plan coming?"

Tom's jaw clenched visibly, before he looked away from Lestrange. "We have to postpone it", he merely said, looking around.

"Postpone it?", the boys echoed.

"Are you insane? Postpone it _again_?", Lestrange roared.

"You might have noticed that half the school will leave over Christmas, so it's no use, isn't it?", Tom snapped, staring at the black-haired boy.

"But we'd postponed it for ages!"

"And we postpone it again!", Tom said calmly, staring at everyone in turn. They immediately seemed to forget their rage.

"So we'll do it after Christmas?", the blonde boy – who, now that I thought about it, looked an awful lot like Draco Malfoy, a Slytherin from my brother Ron's year back in my time – said.

"Yes." Tom shoved his hands back into his pockets and looked up at the tree tops that were laden with snow.

Nobody else seemed to say anything against that.

"And you'll involve us this time?", Lestrange said, his tone undoubtedly angry and challenging.

"Only if you prove yourselves worthy", Tom replied.

"I thought we'd already done that!", the other boy replied, heatedly.

"And I thought we had that topic before", Tom said in an unnaturally soothing voice. "It is my quest, I'm the –"

"Heir, yeah, _awesome_!", Lestrange sneered.

Tom shot him an angry glare. "Are you questioning my ancestry?"

"I wouldn't dare", Lestrange replied calmly, a smirk playing around his thin lips. "I must obey the Heir", he imitated the squeak of a house-elf and even hinted a little bow.

Tom's jaw clenched, a vein pumping viciously on his forehead. "I told you what would happen if one of you betrays me", he said in a low tone, his voice ice-cold.

The boys exchanged glances. Nott and Avery nodded eagerly, whilst Malfoy stared at Tom, his pointy face expressionless, Lestrange, however, froze in his motion. He straightened himself and glared at Tom, his bony face like stone.

"I was _noble_ enough to allow you to accompany me and if you still think as I do, if we still have the same stance on things, then I _expect_ you to respect me and my decisions. If not, well, if you prove yourself _unworthy_ for this task, I shall find my ways to at least convince the others that I will not be _betrayed_!"

They all listened closely to Tom and I, myself, felt goosebumps on my skin as he had finished, his tone icy, his words cutting through the air like blades. _Oh dear Merlin! So this was the side of him that would most likely support his dream of becoming the Darkest wizard of all times, be influential, be a leader…_

Nott and Avery were nodding again, while Malfoy shot a glance at Lestrange who had his fists loosely at his sides, staring at Tom, yet no one dared to say a word. Tom already had them in his command. Tom inclined his head and watched the others jaw-clenched.

"I guess I'll see you after Christmas", he then said and turned to leave.

"Wait!" It was Lestrange who held him back. "Listen –" He sounded almost apologetically, even though there was still a notch of anger in his voice. "All I want is a little piece of the cake, you know?"

"That's everything you want?", Tom asked, looking over his shoulder at him.

"Yes", the other boy breathed.

"Then you have to wait until after Christmas!"

With that Tom left the group of boys, marching to the edge of the Forest and strolled across the snowy grounds towards the castle. I crouched behind the bush and watched how the other boys followed him, Nott and Avery hurtling out of the Forest quickly, while Malfoy remained with Lestrange.

"You shouldn't have pushed it!", I heard the blonde boy say.

"So what? Do you think I'm on his black list now?", Lestrange snapped, motioning the other boy to quit the Forest with him.

"If we really want a piece of that cake, we have to rely on him. He's the only one able to get this whole thing started. Once that is done, however, we won't be needing him anymore."

I gaped after the two boys, as they, Lestrange pulling his hood over his head, walked through the same narrow pass they had come. I waited a moment for them to walk away, before I left my hideout, staring after the group of people that in a not so distant future would become Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters. Even though I was quite shocked by what Lestrange and Malfoy were up to.

Did they plan to betray their leader? _Did they… use Tom?_ They certainly wanted him to do something, start something, so that they could continue it without his help? But what? Did they plan an attack? Whatever it was, I had to wait until after Christmas… or I had to question Tom about it – _no, bad idea! He must not know you overheard their conversation! He must not know about what you knew would happen!_

_So let's start pretending then!_

With that I leapt out of my hideout and walked back to the castle, my body almost petrified by the cold, my robes damp from crouching in the snow, my face numb. I hurried back into the warmth of the Entrance Hall, just as large groups of students came down the stairs and headed to the Great Hall. _Oi, lunch!_ I quickly squeezed past them and headed up to the library, ignoring the stares that followed me.

I reached the library and was almost knocked over by a black-haired girl who came running out of the room, her face drenched in tears. I jumped aside just in time and stared after her quite shocked – as I realized who that black-haired girl was. The girl I'd seen Tom with. Now that I thought about, she seemed quite familiar… but how –

"You'll get over it, Parkinson!", I heard a voice call after her.

Parkinson. _Of course!_ This must be the grandmother or another relative of Pansy Parkinson, the pug-faced Slytherin from my time.

I then turned back to the entrance of the library, just in time to see Tom Riddle talk to a short woman, who seemed to be the librarian. Compared to the vulture-like woman the librarian of my time, Madam Pince, was, this woman looked quite nice, her grey hair in a tight bun, a pair of glasses on a short nose, round cheeks and a seemingly happy smile, she looked more like a relative of Professor Sprout, the Herbology teacher of my time.

I walked a little closer and caught snippets of their conversation.

" – really sorry, Madam Sprout –", Tom just said, his voice soft. _Oh the coincidence!_ "I didn't mean to disturb the quiet."

"Oh, Tom, it's alright", the round-faced woman said, beaming up at him. "It's quite alright. You know, there are so many rude students at this school, I find myself lucky to see that at least one of them cares to apologize."

Tom smiled down at her and nodded.

"Would you excuse me now?", the woman said, turning her head towards the rows of shelves. "Someone jinxed the books in the Herbology section. They just won't stay in their shelves." She heaved a deep sigh and, after Tom nodded again, vanished behind the nearest bookshelf.

I saw how Tom looked after her, before he grabbed the bag to his feet and turned to leave – just as I decided to enter. Our gazes met and he immediately tilted his head.

"Hey", I said with a forced smile, still a little perplexed about the many facets of Tom I had seen in only a few hours time; first the commanding, threatening side, and now the charming, polite one. He was, without a doubt, an extraordinary character.

"Hey", he repeated and shot me a smile. "You have quite a good sense of timing."

"I just saw the masses running to the Great Hall, so I thought it's time for me to get away from there", I replied with a slight grin, eyeing him.

He raised an eyebrow in amusement, before he held out his hand, that I took with slight hesitation. Closing my eyes for just a second, I tried to remember the morning, and how I had felt back then. Why did I feel different now? _Just because I had seen how he interacts with friends and staff? _As if I hadn't known that he was persuasive, manipulating and controlling…

_You've known that, so don't play shocked! _Nope, no more shock._ Let's pretend!_

And so I smiled up at him, as he led me out of the library.

"How was your morning?", he asked as we walked along the corridor.

"Nice", I replied, looking at him. "I was by the lake."

"Beautiful place, isn't it?", he commented, his eyes darting over my face.

I nodded. "Yes, it's lovely and –"

"Solitary", he finished my thought, a genuine smile crossing his handsome features.

I smiled wider and hooked my arm into his. _Yes. You know about solitary places, do you?_

"The snow was beautiful as well, I'd missed that", I went on after a while.

But he merely nodded and stopped in front of a portrait of a rather gruesome looking bear that scraped its paw against the frame of the picture, roaring wildly. Tom looked around the deserted hallway and tipped the frame with his wand.

_Wait a second. Was this –_

The bear suddenly turned into a screeching dove that flew out of the portrait and vanished. The picture seemed empty except for a metallic looking water bowl. But as Tom stepped closer, one hand outstretched, I saw in utter surprise how his fingers slid through the canvas. He turned his head to me and nodded towards the portrait, before he climbed right into the picture.

I stared after him and expected to see him appear on the canvas, but no. He had simply vanished. I looked around in shock and almost jumped as I saw his hand emerging through the portrait. I grabbed it and was soon after pulled right through the canvas, before I landed on the other side, standing next to a smiling Tom.

_No, this was definitely not the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets, as I had half expected it to be._

The room I was facing now was a vast, yet cosy hall lined with tapestries and portraits, statues and busts, large chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling, carpets in many different styles plastered the floor. There was a great number of small, round tables on each side of the room, while the middle remained unoccupied, leaving enough space for at least fifty people to dance.

"Where are we?", I asked in awe, examining the nearest tapestry.

Tom strode past me along the aisle between the rows of tables towards the end of the room where a little platform loomed, before he turned around, facing me.

"This is the Graduation Hall", he said, his head inclined.

I nodded and looked around in astonishment. _What a lovely room – and what a shame that I would never stand on that platform…_ I quickly shook my head to get rid of any depressing thought and followed Tom along the aisle, taking in everything around; the candles on and the cosy looking chairs standing around each table, the happy waving people in the portraits at the walls, all wearing black graduation robes and pointy hats, the tapestries of people dancing in fancy robes and dresses and musicians playing silent music in their paintings.

I then reached Tom and found his gaze. He watched me very closely, as if looking right through me, before he held out his hand, a small smile on his lips. I took his hand and continued watching him, as he then walked me towards one of the small tables that was opulently filled with anything one could eat for lunch.

"Let's eat", he simply said and again, I found myself caught in his charm, discovering yet another side of him.

It proved to be a lot more difficult to see through his varied personality, and even harder to differ his good and bad sides.

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_**A/N:** And a new chapter, new characters, new plot elements. Yes, we heading in the right direction, I would say._

_Please tell me what you think. Remember, you guys keep me writing, so loads of reviews will definitely help me concentrate xD_

_Thanks to **realm-creatress** for the lovely review! Thanks to everyone reading this!_

_**Disclaimer**: Nothing belongs to me and no money is made with this. I wish!_


	15. Agreeing, Seeing, Punching, Enjoying

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Unfinished Business

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Chapter 9

It was way after lunch as Tom and I parted again, literally that was to say. _I couldn't even remember eating anything, which wasn't too good, I guess… _And so I stood on the top of the marble staircase, looking after Tom who descended with a grin on his face as he watched me over his shoulder. I couldn't describe what lingered on my mind, what swirled my thoughts, what made my stomach flip. I knew it couldn't be good… yet there was nothing inside that would do anything against it. _His charm, you fell for him… even though you shouldn't!_, the voice of reason yelled through the fog.

_I did _not_ fall for him!_, I argued, as I watched him leave through the front doors.

_Yes, you did! And you know this isn't the first time!_

Tom vanished out of sight and left me standing, gaping after him. _Oh god. Yes, this felt familiar, the sensation inside… _I had felt like this before, back when I was eleven and he had been the only one who – in my humble opinion – had understood me, he, out-of-the-diary-Tom. No, now was different… now was… I didn't have these feelings when I was in my first year, god, no, this was different. This was…

_Oh dear._

Yes, I did fall for him… he made me.

"_Riddle made me"_, I heard my own voice in my memory.

Could it be? Did he manipulate me again? Did he force me into doing things I didn't want to do? Or was it me who felt like this, completely voluntarily? It felt as if I was still able to control what I did… didn't it? _Oh great, thanks for the confusion, stupid voice of reason!_

I shook my head absent-mindedly and turned away from the stairs – just to almost collide with a rather tall figure. I gasped as I looked up and as realization struck me. _Lestrange_. The black-haired boy stared down at me with an indifferent expression on his bony face, the scratch on his cheek gleaming in the soft light.

"Watch where you're going, redhead", he then said in a bored tone and walked past me, leaving me with a tingle running down my spine.

Lestrange. I had met his son Rodolphus and his evil daughter-in-law, Bellatrix Lestrange, one of the most dangerous supporters Voldemort could count on. Meeting the first Lestrange who was about to turn into a Death Eater couldn't have been creepier. I stared after him as he descended the stairs and took the same route Tom had taken. Swallowing hard, I tried to quit wondering what Lestrange was doing on the first landing when his common room was several landings below…

Without hesitation I leapt after him, down the steps and out onto the grounds, the cold air immediately gripping me. I pulled my robes and scarf closer around me and watched right and left to where Tom or Lestrange or both might have gone. I then saw a group of black robed people standing in front of the greenhouses, apparently waiting to be let in. I slowly strolled towards them, staying close to the castle's wall and out of sight.

Just as I came into earshot, I heard footsteps behind me. I knew it was too late to hide, as I felt a hand on my shoulder. I span around in shock and stared into a pale, pointy face that was framed by white-blonde hair. Cold, grey eyes bored into me, as a smirk twisted the thin lips of my opponent.

"Got lost, darling?", Draco Malfoy's grandfather said with a sneer, watching me over. "I can't remember having a Gryffindor in our class."

I glared at him and bent away from his hand, straightening myself, the group behind me luckily unaware of the encounter.

"Actually, I can't remember having seen you here before", Malfoy went on before I could say anything.

"I usually avoid walking into Slytherins", I countered, coldly.

His smirk died away immediately. Narrowing his grey eyes, he said: "Then I would advise you to get away at once!"

"I'd love to", I said with a glare, before I walked past him back towards the front doors.

Damn, that could have ended badly! _You really shouldn't poke your nose into things like that!_

_Yes, it was bad, but still._ _Do you really expect that with Tom not turning into Voldemort the world will be saved? What about those stupid boys? They are just as dangerous!_

I reached the Entrance Hall and leant, a little out of breath, against the nearest wall. Looking around, I found the Hall deserted. I inhaled deeply, closed my eyes for a second and thought of a plan. A plan. _Yeah, maybe you should start with not getting distracted by a certain future Dark Lord. As if snogging would help you solve this problem!_

I felt my cheeks redden as the voice of reason nagged inside me again, being awfully close to the truth. I really should think of a plan… but what could I do anyway besides gaining his trust? _You already have his trust, now focus on something else! _Like what? _Maybe what he and those boys are planning to do after Christmas? _How should I learn about that?

_Be creative!_

Nice, thanks for the advice…

I heaved a sigh and looked around once more. _It was one thing to get close to Tom Riddle; it was another to get inside his mind. _I didn't know how it should help me, but I then decided to pay a visit to the library. Ascending slowly, loosening my scarf and pocketing my gloves on the way, I reached the fourth floor and entered the library, noticing that the librarian was not behind her desk. I walked around the shelves in search of anything helpful, even though I was sadly aware of the fact that no book would fly out of its shelf towards me.

As I reached the Defence Against The Dark Arts section, I saw a short girl crouched over a desk, her nose almost touching the yellowed pages of the book she was reading. I ignored her and scanned the books on the shelf behind her. As she noticed me, she stiffened visibly in her chair, leaning even closer to the book. While I grabbed a book entitled "Confronting The Faceless", I could see her move slightly out of the corner of my eye.

It was then as she turned around openly, glaring at me.

I frowned as I turned to her, my eyes slowly widening. Before I could, however, think of anything to do, think or say, she had punched me hard in the nose. Blinded by pain, I stumbled backwards into the bookshelf, clutching my throbbing nose.

"Rrr-hu-insane?", I mumbled, glaring at her from behind my hands.

She had risen to her feet, her black hair framing an angry face. When I had entered the library, I did not expect to be punched by anyone named Parkinson. Her eyes were narrowed, her fist still hanging in mid-air.

"How dare you!", she hissed, her whole body tensed. "HOW DARE YOU!"

"Whad are you dalking 'bout?", I hissed back, my aching nose making it almost impossible to speak.

"You are that girl that Tom dumped me for!"

"Whad?" I gaped at her.

"You heard me! How dare you sneak on him like that! How dare you!! We had great things planned, me and Tom. Great things and you –"

"What's going on?", another voice interrupted her and a bespectacled witch looked around the shelf.

As she saw my bleeding nose, she inhaled deeply, quickly drawing her wand and pointing it at the mess in the middle of my face. I felt something wash over it and the next moment my nose was healed. Gently poking it, I sighed as the pain had vanished, before I looked at the witch who glared at the other girl instead.

"Patricia! I've had enough of your little games in my library! Consider yourself banned for the month!"

Patricia Parkinson shot me a glare, grabbed the book she was reading and pushed past the witch, who, however, held her back and took the book from her.

"That is property of the library; you can not take it with you!"

The black-haired girl gave a grunt and rushed out of the library. I turned to the witch, who merely shook her head, placed the book back on the table and turned around to stare towards another section where books kept flying out of their shelves. She then left with a deep sigh. I stared after her, still feeling my mended nose – before I shot a glance at the book on the table.

"Love Potions" was plastered all over it. _You could find such a book in the library? I'm impressed – and shocked! Damn it, what is she planning?_ Oh dear, was she trying to win Tom back by poisoning him? _Another plot against him?_ I'd never thought about that. First Malfoy and Lestrange, now this girl? And I had thought the only danger would come from the future Dark Lord himself…

_How wrong I had been…_

I grabbed the book and shoved it under my robes, before I left the library hurriedly, quickly descending until I reached the portrait hiding the Head common room.

"_Gravis officium_", I told the wizard in the painting, but he merely shook his head. "_Gravis officium_!", I repeated, staring at him.

"No."

"No? Why not?"

"That is not the password."

"Not?" I was completely perplexed. "But –"

Suddenly I heard footsteps from behind that stopped dead once they came close. I turned around to see the blonde Head Girl, who glared at me.

"You are not welcome anymore!", she merely said. "And if I see you here or in there ever again, I'll have you banished!"

I opened my mouth to question that but she had stormed away before I could think of anything. Gaping after her, I remained standing puzzled by the portrait. _I really had to watch my back from now on… those people and their hostility_! I looked around aimlessly and then decided to wait for Tom. Sitting down on the top of the steps, I then pulled out the book and started reading about love potions. I seemed to have dozed off over the narrow writing of the book, as I suddenly felt a hand shaking my shoulder.

I leapt up in shock, swinging the book around me in blind defence. I hit something solid and the next thing I heard was a quiet groan. I quickly looked around – my eyes widening in shock as I watched Tom holding his chest with a tired smirk.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!", I cried, let go of the book and got hold of his hands, looking up at him in silent apologizing. "I didn't mean to hit you."

"Forget it", he said, shooting me a genuine smile. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"Um", I began, looking around. "The password changed."

"The password changed?", he repeated, as flustered as I was.

"The portrait wouldn't let me pass and then the Head Girl came up and said I'm no longer welcome and I'll get banished or something if she sees me in there ever again. It's weird that you don't know about the new password yet, isn't it?"

He nodded, his jaw clenched slightly. "She really did that?", he muttered, more to himself, before looking past my head. "I'll be back", he then said and walked past me across the hallway. I watched him leave and absent-mindedly bent down to pick up the book. He came back rather quickly, grabbing my hand as he approached me and walked me to the portrait.

"_Ludos fidere_", he then told the wizard, who nodded lazily – before the portrait swung open. "I can't believe she actually did that…", Tom muttered as he guided me forwards to climb through the gap in the wall. The portrait closed behind him and silence washed over us as we walked across the common room.

As I walked past the high windows I could see the sun set behind the mountains, golden sunbeams reflecting off the sparkling snow. While I was staring out of the windows, Tom had moved to the notice board on the wall, eagerly writing something on a small piece of parchment, the scratching of his quill the only sound in the room.

"Is she always like that?", I asked after a while, slowly walking closer to him.

"Huh?", he replied, sunken into his writing.

"The Head Girl."

"Hm. Yes, she always thinks she's the only one in charge here", he said and wrote another line onto the already crammed parchment.

Before I could see what he had been writing, he lowered his quill, sighed and turned around to me, just as I came to a halt beside him. His eyes wandered over my face, a small, tired smile creeping up his features. I looked up to him, replying his smile.

"What were you reading out there?", he asked, tilting his head.

"What?" I then recalled the presence of the book clutched unknowingly behind my back. My eyes widened. "Um, nothing."

"Nothing?", he echoed with a smirk. "Sure."

"Yeah, nothing. Totally boring. I –"

But you couldn't keep anything from Tom Riddle. In a smooth movement he had pulled his arms around me and turned me around so that my back was pressed against his chest, while his hands held my wrists gently. His head darted over my shoulder; his hands turned mine to see the title of the book.

"Love… potions… ?", he read, his voice growing quieter.

I felt terribly uncomfortable in his grip. _Oh dear, please don't let him make the wrong conclusions! _My chest rose and fell rapidly. Swallowing hard, I tried to explain. "That's not mine, actually. You know, I bumped into… no, that's wrong, actually she punched me in the nose… in the library, you know? And she was reading this book and the librarian banned her and… and I just took this to see what she was up to and –"

"Stop!", he interrupted me, letting go of my wrists and turning me around by placing his hands on my shoulders. "Nice and slowly, now. Who punched you in the nose?"

"This girl, Patricia Parkinson, or so she was called."

Tom raised an eyebrow. "_She_ punched you?"

"Yes, I was in the library, and I came into the… this section and there she was, crouched over a book, this book" – I waved the book in my hands – "And suddenly she gets up and then my nose was broken! She had punched me! And luckily the librarian came and mended it, but still. She punched me and then she had to leave and she left this book…"

He watched me with a semi-amused, semi-confused gaze, his forehead furrowed.

"You don't believe me, huh?", I asked, barely audible. I felt something else besides the weird sensation inside. Something bad.

He eyed me for a moment, before he snatched the book from my hands, flipping through it with a stern expression. I bit my lip as he finally closed the book again and looked into my eyes.

"Actually, I think your story might be true", he then said, inclining his head.

"It is", I breathed.

"Patty has a reputation to… well, to get what she wants by any means. She once poisoned a teacher for giving her a bad grade." A smirk crept up his face as he narrowed his eyes. "And I think your nose does look a little different."

"What?", I shrieked, my hands rushing up to touch my nose carefully, my fingers flying over it in panic.

"Don't worry, it's just as cute as before", he whispered, one hand gently grabbing mine.

Lowering my hands I watched him very closely, my mouth dry. "So… you… you never thought I might have… um, slipped you a… love potion or anything?"

"No", he replied, absent-mindedly getting rid of the book in his hands. "I would have known."

_Sure_. "So it's not weird…"

"What is weird?", he asked with amusement in his voice.

"This."

Tom tilted his head, his fingers hooking into mine. "Do you think it's weird?"

"Actually, yes. I mean… we… this came so sudden and, well, don't you feel weird?"

He laughed, a sound I haven't yet heard coming from him. "No, I don't really think about that. I just…" His eyes darted over me. "Enjoy it."

I felt myself blush heavily.

"Don't you enjoy it?"

I moistened my lips as I stared up at him. "I do enjoy it…", I admitted, the dilemma inside growing viciously, the voice of reason nagging loudly.

"Then I don't see a problem", he said, leaning closer, his hands holding mine firmly. Our faces grew closer, but just as his lips were about to brush over mine, he leant back again, sighing deeply. "Come", he said quietly.

With that he dragged me gently down the staircase. We entered his room and this time it was me who started the mess. I pulled my arms around his neck and immediately pressed myself against him, the sensation inside yearning manically. Our lips collided just as the door slammed shut as Tom stumbled backwards against it. His hands found my waist, while I leant against him, clinging onto him, my lips closing around his.

Yet even in the heat of the moment I could feel that Tom wasn't as passionate as before. Something was different. Kissing the corner of his mouth, I then leant a little back and looked up at him. His dark eyes looked unnaturally grave.

"Tom, what is it?"

He merely watched me, his hands holding me safely, his features unreadable.

"Tom?", I asked again, my hands cupping his face.

"Maybe this is… weird after all", he replied after a while, observing me unblinkingly.

"What do you mean?"

"It's just –", he began, but quickly interrupted himself, his gaze flying upwards to the ceiling. He closed his eyes for a moment, before he looked back at me. "I never thought I would –"

"Yes?", I asked after he paused again.

"– feel like this", he said, his lips barely moving, his dark eyes boring into mine.

I couldn't help but smile slightly, yet tried not to show my affection too quickly. "Like what?", I asked instead.

He eyed me, a longing within his eyes I had only seen flashes of before.

"Like…" His voice was steady, yet there was a slight uneasiness in the way the words left his mouth. "Well, put it this way, I don't feel the urge to get rid of you very soon."

I chuckled. "Nice way of saying that", I said and shot him a grin, while my thumbs ran over his high cheekbones.

"You don't think that's weird?"

_He's asking my opinion? Wow, I tamed the beast!_ "No, absolutely not, I think that's a… normal feeling –" As I didn't see him relax, I added: "It means you … found someone who… feels the same… and –"

"I think I get it now", he said with a smirk and pulled me closer, our noses only inches away. "Just wanted to make sure."

His lips closed around mine, the sensation within pumping through my system. I responded hungrily, my hands holding his face firmly. His passion was re-awakening as well as his hands held the small of my back, my body pressed against his, our lips colliding, our tongues wrestling. It was a short yet wild encounter.

Tom eventually broke away, even though his eyes clearly didn't agree. He kissed my forehead and eyed me for a while, before he heaved a sigh.

"I have to go to the Head/Prefect meeting tonight", he said, as he played absent-mindedly with my hand. "That could take a while."

"I'll be here", I simply said and inclined my head.

He nodded, kissed me again and walked over to his desk, while I sat down on his bed, watching him closely. Suddenly an idea popped into my head. An evil thought… and yet necessary. Tom rummaged through his bag, then grabbed a quill, a roll of parchment and his notebook, before he shot a glance at the clock on his bedside table. He walked to the bed, leant down, one hand holding his things, the other firmly but gently grabbing my chin.

"Don't stay up if it's going to be too late, alright?", he mouthed and closed his lips around mine.

I nodded and watched him leave. A few moments after the door was closed, I leapt up and walked to his desk, determined to find anything useful inside his bag.

* * *

_**A/N:** Finally a new chapter, yes, it took me a little longer because I'm quite busy at the moment: I went to my university on Monday and tomorrow, on Wednesday, I'll get the key for my new apartment - which is completely empty, so there won't be anything besides a matress... no internet, pc, anything... but I'll only stay there for a few hours, getting to know the area and such, after that I'll take a 5-hour train ride home, pack my entire stuff one I'm there and return here on Friday, and and and yet there might be a chance that there's a new chapter on Thursday, we'll see._

_Until then: THANK YOU EVERYONE for reading and reviewing!  
Thanks Bianca, sorry, I can't write much, next time more!_

_**Disclaimer**: None._

_Tell me what you think!_

_**EDIT**: Sorry, sorry, sorry, I don't think I'll post a new chapter this week... maybe next week, I'm really busy right now with packing my stuff and moving out... I didn't know I had so much stuff, ugh! Anyway, SORRY FOR THE DELAY! Maybe you could re-read the story while you wait xD _


	16. The Point Of No Return

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**Unfinished Business**

* * *

_**A/N: **Beware! Major mature content ahead!_

_**A/N 2: **An update and I am terribly sorry for the delay! See more about the bad, bad, meanie authoress at the end.  
And now, enjoy! _

* * *

**Chapter 10**

After countless moments, minutes that lasted for hours, in which my heart seemed to jump out of my chest, I heaved a sigh and sank onto the bed again. Yes, I had hoped to find anything, _anything_, between Tom's books, notes, quills, parchment rolls, even in between his clothes – but no, _nothing_! Raiding his desk, bag, closet and every other corner of his room in high speed with my hands trembling and my heart racing, expecting Tom to come back every minute, whatever I went through to get any information, it got me nowhere!

Tom seemed to be as clean as his clothes – which, as I went through his closet, gave me a rather weird sensation somewhere in the pit of my stomach. A sensation the voice of reason was greatly protesting against.

Rubbing my eyes, I looked around the room that didn't hold a single clue that the boy inhabiting it would eventually become the future Dark Lord. A thought struck me – to be frowned upon almost immediately by the voice of reason: the Head meeting would definitely not help me save the world.

Saving the world… _My, that sounded grave_!

It is!

_Sure, but it doesn't feel like it_. What it felt like right now, as I sat on Tom's bed, was completely different. There was no weight pushing down on me – as the voice of reason would have loved to see – as it would have been likely considering my task. No, there was no weight, I actually felt extremely light-headed. Light-headed and – with a roar of my conscience – not entirely guilty about it.

And so I sat on the edge of the bed, my conscience bonding with the voice of reason to fight the funny feeling in the pit of my stomach. I closed my eyes, inhaled deeply and suddenly felt fatigue washing over me. _Alright, enough for today. Give it a rest!_

_Yes, you too, stupid voice of reason! _

With that I fell onto the bed, crept clumsily under the sheets and gave it a rest, not even bothering to undress, shutting out everything as sleep washed over me, pulling me into a dark nothingness.

It must have been long after midnight as I woke up again. The room around me was pitch-black. Trying to fight the fear rising inside, I rolled onto my side, facing the other side of the bed. Yet I couldn't make out anything, so I slowly reached out and felt over the sheets next to me.

My fingers found nothing but cold fabric.

Just as the question about Tom's whereabouts popped into my head, I heard a faint noise from across the room.

_Someone's here_.

And there clearly was, as I heard another breath beside my own. My heart hammered inside my chest.

"Tom?", I asked into the darkness, my voice hoarse.

"Go back to sleep", came the quiet answer from where I suspected the desk to be.

"Tom? What are you doing over there?", I continued asking, trying to make him out in the dark.

No reply.

"Tom, why don't you come to bed?", I suggested without thinking about the words leaving my mouth. _It felt right to say just that._

I heard a rustling from the other side of the room, as if Tom was shifting in his chair.

"Do you want me to?"

His question confused me. He never before seemed to hesitate about those intimacies we shared so far. I always thought it would be me who should feel awkward about the circumstances.

"Yes", I merely said, sitting up on bed.

Silence hovered between us for a second before I heard the chair squeak softly. Then footsteps came closer to the bed and I saw – my eyes finally adjusting to the dark – Tom's blurry outline emerging from the shadows. He stepped to the bed and watched me.

"I didn't mean to wake you", he said quietly.

"You didn't", I replied, watching him sit down on the bed, his eyes still on me.

As he moved closer, I saw him still wearing his white Oxford shirt and black uniform trousers. Why hadn't he changed? _Well, look at yourself – it's uniform night!_ Even though he sat on the edge of the bed, turned around to face me, he didn't seem to intend to join me.

"Tom, what's wrong?", I asked, slowly moving to him until I knelt beside him.

His eyes – dark pits in the whiteness of his face – darted over me.

"Nothing", he replied with a frown.

"Then why were you sitting at your desk, in the middle of the night, in complete darkness?"

He merely shrugged, his eyes leaving me for a moment.

"Tom?"

"Yes?" His voice sounded tired.

"Tell me what's wrong."

"I told you, I'm fine. Nothing's wrong!"

I watched him closely, before I gently placed my hands on his arm.

"Tom, you're shivering!", I gasped, feeling his whole body trembling beneath my touch.

"I'm fine", he repeated.

I moved closer to him and softly cupped his face, our eyes locking immediately.

"You don't look fine."

"Why, thank you", he said with a failed attempt of a smirk.

"You know what I mean", I whispered, our faces so close – even in the darkness – I could see every pale inch of his face, the exhaustion deep within his dark eyes and the slight trembling of his lower lip. "Just tell me –"

"No!", he broke the peace between us by jerking his head out of my grip. He quickly got to his feet and stood, quite awkwardly, beside the bed.

I stared at the back of his head, frozen in the moment, my hands slowly sinking to my lap.

"I'm sorry", I then said, blindly following the feeling inside my stomach. "I shouldn't – I mean, … I'm not the person to – I –" Sighing, I began again. "We don't really know each other, I – I wouldn't tell myself anything either if I were you. I mean, I totally understand this, I just stepped into your life and – well, I said so before, I must be annoying and I understand if you want me to leave –"

"No", he merely said, very quietly.

I stared up at him as he turned around to me.

"I told you before, you're not a burden. It's just –"

"Yes?"

"New to me."

I tilted my head while he sat down on the edge of the bed again, his head lowered, his hands shaking on his lap.

"New?", I asked after he left his words hanging in the darkness around us. "What do you mean?"

"This –", he began, his voice even quieter. "This with – well –" He heaved a sigh and raised his head to look me in the eye. "It's new to me that someone… cares."

And again I found myself completely stunned and in great disbelief that I was kneeling beside the future Dark Lord.

I countered his words with a soft kiss, before I locked eyes with him again. He looked at me as if he was studying every inch of my freckled face. I threw him a smile and took his hands into mine. They were ice-cold.

"You better get used to the fact that someone cares about you. You know I have nowhere else to go – but that doesn't mean I'm here involuntarily. You know –" I inclined my head, shutting out the voice of reason and only concentrated on the feeling in the pit of my stomach. "I'm really growing fond of this situation. And of… you."

My voice almost broke as I uttered the last three words, even my eyes felt strangely watery. I didn't know why or how but in that exact moment, I knew that the nameless feeling had won over my conscience. The balance between knowing about Tom's future and witnessing the real Tom had shifted. My fear, panic, horror of what he might become were gone, suppressed at least, and the only thing that mattered was the warm feeling inside that told me to live in the present and cherish every given moment.

And even though the voice of reason kept nagging on about my task and the reason I was here, I successfully shut it out as I stared into Tom's dark eyes.

He eyed me with his expression unreadable – so that after a few moments in silence, I seriously thought I had gone too far.

But then he hooked his fingers into mine, a spark flashing in his eyes. It was a tiny gesture and yet it simply said everything. And on the spur of the moment I flung my arms around his neck and leant my head tiredly against his. I then felt him pull his arms around me – a little hesitantly though.

"Will you join me now?", I whispered into his ear, before I leant back – not entirely surprised to see the old spark of desire shimmering in his eyes.

Even though I was extremely tired, I somehow managed to undress and end up snuggled against Tom with only small pieces of underwear and the cold fabric of the bed sheets covering us. He had his arm around me as my head rested on his chest, his heartbeat ringing in my ears, putting me to sleep almost immediately.

As I woke up the next morning, I found myself lying in the middle of the bed, completely alone, the bed sheets loosely around me. I blinked repeatedly, squinting as I saw pale sunbeams breaking through the curtains. _Tom?_ I looked around sleepily, before a thought struck me so hard I actually sat up in bed, fully awake. My eyes wandered towards his desk on which – as I could see in the dimness of the room – lay – as if waiting only for me – his notebook. The only book I hadn't checked last night, in which I was so absolutely sure to find something useful. _Anything_.

Without thinking, sleep still hanging onto me despite my desire to get up, I leapt out of the bed, dragged the bed sheets along with me and stumbled clumsily towards the desk, my hands quickly getting hold of the cold leather-bound book. Just as I was about to open it, I heard a faint noise behind me.

I froze immediately as I heard the door opening.

_Oh no_. Sleep was no longer existent, but a new awoken fear spread inside my body, and even the voice of reason was yelling at me for this stupid, spontaneous idea.

"What are you doing?", Tom's voice, distant and yet as cold as I could have imagined, interrupted my thoughts.

I swallowed and tried to put the book down again as casually as possible, before I turned around to him, the bed sheets wrapped around my shoulders in a suddenly very strangulating way. I tried to throw him a smile but as I saw his narrowed eyes, any attempt of a smile froze on my face, leaving a grotesque mask of shock and panic.

Before I could say anything, Tom strode forwards and snatched the book from the desk. His eyes glided over me for a second – before he turned away, his jaw clenched. He closed his eyes for a moment, seemingly trying to suppress something from jumping into my face. As he looked at me again, I couldn't help but notice a weak, yet noticeable red spark flashing in the darkness of his pupils.

With that I woke up.

My heart was leaping against my ribcage, my hands sweaty, my breath stuck inside my throat. _A dream. Only a dream…_ I sighed and sat up slowly. The room was still dark and – as I noticed as I looked around – Tom was still lying next to me; rolled onto his side, his pale face a mask of calm, his breathing soothing my jumping heart. _A dream, huh? More like a… premonition, a vision of what may happen if you push the boundaries of your relationship to him too far. If you are not careful enough in order to fulfil your task…_

Watching Tom for a moment in the dimness of the room, I tried to calm my nerves. _Oh dear…_ The point of no return has been passed. There was no way out of this stupid situation. _He accepted you in his life, you accepted to be in his life – and now you have to do whatever it takes to stay in his life – to do what you have been sent back for. Do not forget that!_ How could I with everyone nagging on about it?

I watched him shifting slightly in his sleep; his black hair messy, one hand under his pillow, the other loosely by his side, the bed sheets covering his bottom half, leaving his naked torso in the open. _Oh dear…_ Without thinking about it, I gently grabbed the bed sheets and pulled it over his shoulders. He shifted again, his loose hand twitching slightly.

Lying back beside him, imitating his pose by placing one hand under my pillow, I continued watching him in the darkness, before I took his hand into mine, the cold of his skin mesmerizing me for a moment. My eyes still on his sleeping form, I couldn't help but wonder whether I really had to do anything except lying – being – with Tom.

Did I really have to sneak and spy behind his back to keep him from becoming something evil or did I just have to be with him, showing him that there was more to life than being powerful and Dark? And if I did only the latter, would it be enough?

My eyes wandered over his pale face, my fingers still holding his hand, the cold of his skin hardly giving way. He shifted slightly in his sleep, so peaceful, so calm, so absolutely not evil. _Focus_, the voice of reason hissed._ Do not get confused by his calm looks! Evil always breeds inside; unseen to the ordinary eye._

Yeah, whatever!

_You'll thank me one day!_

But not now. Now I'd like to watch Tom sleep. Speaking of which, I – I think I –

_Do not name it! Don't! Once you name it, it won't go away!_

But why not?

_Because then you'll forget why you're here!_

I sure won't!

We'll talk later… 

I heaved a sigh and snuggled into the pillow, my thumb absent-mindedly running over the back of Tom's hand. It was then that he inhaled a little louder than usual – before he opened his eyes sleepily, our gazes meeting in the process.

"Hey", he whispered hoarsely, before looking at our intertwined hands.

"Hey", I replied, smiling, as he looked back at me. "I'm sorry I woke you."

He reacted with a twitch of the corners of his mouth, lazily moving closer to me. Pulling the bed sheets around us, I lay close to him, feeling his cold body beneath the sheets. Letting go of his hand, I embraced him gently, fighting the cold that penetrated his body by pressing mine against his. He pulled his free arm around me, his icy fingertips causing me to shiver as they ran over my bare back.

Our faces were merely inches away; I could feel his breath on my forehead as he moved his head to place his lips on my hairline. I closed my eyes and leant into the cosy feeling of safety, losing myself in his touch and closeness. Even though I felt sleep washing over me, something inside told me that I would spend the upcoming moments differently.

And as Tom began to massage my neck, with his fingers running through my hair, I felt an old, yet new found feeling rise inside. I moved my eyes up to meet his and found myself soon after sucking on his lips. While I still pressed myself against him, we kissed each other as if there was no tomorrow – what, if you think about it, could always happen. Our tongues fought wildly, with every new second of passion an old second of sleep vanished.

As Tom's arms were wrapped around me, there was no such thing as a desire to sleep. He was just sucking aggressively on my lower lip, as a little gasp escaped my throat, the feeling inside intensifying. I really did pass the point of no return. I found myself deep within a circle I couldn't escape anymore. _He had me – with every fibre of my being. He had me… just like he had me several years ago as I had found his ominous diary._ Yet, again, this felt different; I still felt as if I could resist him – even though I didn't want to.

Oh no, as he was now nibbling on my earlobe, his arms pressing me against his naked chest, I did not want to resist him at all. _I was all his…_ and I didn't mind. I leant my head back for him to kiss the hollow of my throat, closing my eyes to cherish the tingling sensation inside. _It was too late to do anything against it… Much too late_, as I felt him pulling me onto him as he rolled on his back. Continuing to kiss him passionately, I only half-heartedly noticed how he got rid of our underwear.

Soon even the bed sheets felt much too hot and I found myself wrapped around him, my legs parted by his. My hands ran through his hair, while my lips fought on their own, caught in a soft, yet hungry kiss. Moments – in which I felt as if desire would tear me asunder – passed, before Tom rolled around, pinning me to the bed by lying on top of me. Supported by his arms, he tilted his head and moved his lips along my jaw line, leaving tingling kisses on my skin.

As our eyes met for just a short moment, I suddenly had the impression that a fire was burning within the dark pits of his pupils. An almost striking realization hit me, as he continued kissing me, his grip on my wrists tightening, the weight of his body breathtaking, the movement of his lips, his kisses, nibbling, gnawing, sucking becoming wilder with every second.

I gasped as he moved down my chest, planting kisses along the line between my breasts, his hands still closed tightly around my wrists in order to pin me to the bed. The fire I thought to have seen in his eyes, _red_… _just like – oh dear, please don't! Could it be? _Is my plan (oh, what plan?) backfiring? In order to keep him from becoming the future Dark Lord, who will be driven by power, domination and hunger, I thought showing him another side of life, would bring him back onto a normal path. The power of – _what?_ Love? Affection? Aren't those also leading to power, domination and hunger? Whatever I did, I couldn't keep the fire burning inside of him from spreading…

As Tom was sucking on my lower lip, his teeth gently, yet viciously pulling on my skin, I couldn't help but feel a major weight pressing on my heart – besides Tom's body that was to say. I suddenly felt the urge to shove him off me – even though said urge would stay unanswered as I couldn't even move beneath him. Yet a flame of hot panic ran through my veins, leaving traces of fear and distress whenever Tom kissed another part of my body.

I tried to fight the fear by leaning into the other feeling existent inside me, the desire to be touched, to be held, to be loved. I even freed my hands and cupped his face with them as he leant closer to my lips again. Our lips collided passionately. He forced his tongue hard into my mouth, causing me to shiver even more underneath his touch. I gasped for breath once he let go of me for just a second, before he continued kissing me in a rather hungry way.

Panting beneath him, I felt his stare on me, as he drew back a little, pulling me up as well. Our gazes met and once again I couldn't help but see a flash of red shimmering inside his eyes. _Did I just imagine that? Please let me imagine it_… Tom wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into a sitting position, with our hearts beating against each other. I inclined my head as he kissed my neck, his fingers running through my hair forcefully.

Biting my lip, swallowing the panic inside, I pressed myself against him, my hands loosely around him, my nails softly drawing lines along his back. I felt his whole body stiffening, a jerk running through him, before he grabbed my shoulders and leant me back a little, his eyes, as dark as the room surrounding us, boring into mine. My heart was now pounding inside my throat, as I felt him shifting above me.

Another wave of panic shook me. His hands supported the little of my back, as he lowered my torso a little, our eyes still staring into the other's, my breath caught inside my windpipe. One hand still pressed against my back, he moved his other hand between us, before he leant towards me, both of us half-sitting, half-lying, as my panic gave the loudest roar for the night.

I felt tears burning inside my eyes as he moved inside me. He watched me closely as he lay me onto my back, his hands resting on my hips, while he moved gently and repetitively on top of me. As the first tear emerged my eyes, I saw a flash of concern striking his pale face. He quickly leant closer to me, placing a soft kiss on my cheek, before he pressed the side of his face against mine, whispering into my ear: "Are you alright?"

A sob erupted from my throat before I could stop it. Closing my eyes for a moment, I tried to swallow the fear growing inside. "Yes", I whispered back, my voice far away from being alright. "I'm fine."

He leant back a little to watch me closely. "You'll tell me if I hurt you?", he asked, his voice calm.

I nodded clumsily, trying to smile up at him. I shot him another glance before he leant down to kiss me, no more hunger or violent passion, but gentle affection speaking from his movements. Yet several moments of gentleness passed by, in which I pulled my arms around his neck, closing my eyes to breathe in his every move, before his old desire came back.

He was sucking on my lip, his arms propped beside me, his lower body moving on top of me rhythmically, as another jerk ran through his body. His lips hovered over me for a while, before he suddenly pulled me into a sitting position, pressing me tightly against him. He didn't even seem to notice the gasp emerging me as he did so, he just pulled me up, his hands running over my back until they rested on my buttocks.

My whole body was shaking as he kissed my collarbones, moving over my neck to my earlobe, all the while his hands pressed me closer to him, as he continued to move beneath me. My heart was hammering inside my chest, as he raised one hand to incline my head by running his fingers through my hair in a rather violent way. I obeyed without question, I didn't even dare to move in his tight grip. Biting my lip, suppressing the panic creeping up my throat, I closed my eyes as he gnawed on my earlobe, his other hand leaving my backside to ran over my chest.

His hand closed around my right breast tightly, just before he moved me – his other hand still entangled in my hair – back into a lying position, his body weight pressing onto me with a force. Trying to catch my breath, I felt him move quicker on top of me, all his movements reflecting the fire that burnt between us. Propped on his arms again, he continued kissing me, his tongue pressing against mine in a hungry fight.

I felt his panting breath on my equally heated skin as he pressed his cheek against mine, both of us leaning into the last moments of our tight embrace. Before I could, however, cherish the sensation erupting inside, another wave of fear washed over me, leaving me lying wide-eyed underneath him. I heard his breath quickening, his movements getting more abrupt, his heart beating close to mine.

Just as he leant back a little, his eyes closed, his lips slightly parted, even his pale face faintly flushed, I felt an enormous pain spreading through my entire body, running through my veins until every nerve was tingling viciously.

"Tom!", I moaned in pain, squeezing my eyes shut to shut out the throbbing.

I felt him relaxing on top of me, his quick breath echoing in my ears. His hands found my face, his thumbs distantly running along my cheeks. Darkness swept over me, every nerve flashing like dying stars in front of my eyes. The next thing I noticed, was Tom's soft voice very close to my ear.

"Ginny?"

I opened my eyes panting, feeling exhausted and avid at the same time. Tom was watching me with his mouth slightly open, a concerned frown on his handsome face, his bare chest rising and falling quickly, as he knelt beside me. I looked around for a second, feeling strangely lost, before I sat up as well, rubbing my face – which was soaked in tears. Lowering my shaking hands, staring at them as if they didn't belong to me, I shot a glance at Tom. He lazily pulled the bed sheets around my body and began stroking my back gently.

I watched him for a while, paralysed by his warming touch, before he withdrew his hand and got up from the bed, slowly walking towards the windows behind whose curtains the first beams of light tried to push through. I watched how he grabbed one curtain and moved it aside slightly, his naked body outlined by the sudden light breaking through the dark. I suddenly wondered why I had felt so panicky before, why I couldn't cherish the moment we had shared.

Thinking about it, I felt rather childish. _It's too late anyway, that stupid panic came to a complete inappropriate time! I can't go back now, so I shouldn't feel guilty or afraid of what lay ahead._ _It was my choice to go this way and not the other; I chose to be the devil's sidekick and not his enemy._ And as I got up from bed, dragging the bed sheets behind me, I knew I could never be anything else to Tom Riddle but the person who would do anything to stay on his good side.

With that I pulled my arms around him, leaning my cheek against his back.

* * *

_**A/N:** I hope this was worth the wait. I am really really sorry that there was not the smallest update in almost three weeks!  
The last time I updated, I have been living at my parents, whereas now, I am living on my own, in my own apartment, with university starting on Tuesday. Leaving me with only one whole free day ..._

_Anyway, thank you everyone for reading and reviewing, you know that I love you all so much! Thanks for the support and hopefully you still like this story - enough to forgive me that upcoming updates might take a little while longer now._

_**Disclaimer**: Nada._


	17. I'm Just Not Good At Talking

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**Unfinished Business**

* * *

**Chapter 11.1**

While I leant against Tom, I could feel his hands getting hold of my arms, his heart beating in his bare chest against them. And so we stood for a moment, half hidden in the dark of the room, half revealed by the early sunbeams breaking through the gap between the curtains, while the snow sparkled outside and the day awoke behind the mountains. After several moments, Tom shifted beneath my touch and slowly let go of my arms, turning his head around to face me.

I looked up and met his gaze, his eyes tired, yet empty, dark pits. He raised a hand to rub his face in visible exhaustion, before he looked back at me, a tiny smile breaking from his lips. While I still held onto his shoulders, I wondered what tomorrow would look like. Was this the beginning of something? After passing the point of no return, there was clearly no turning back, but what was it that was waiting ahead?

I couldn't tell what he was thinking, as he lowered his gaze and slowly stepped away from me, grabbing his bathrobe hanging over the back of his chair. Dressed again, he walked back to the windows, standing beside me, our gazes following the vastness of the snowy horizon. Just as I started to feel as if there was something building up between us, I felt his hand closing around mine.

I turned my head to him and saw him watching me.

"Tom?", I then asked, my voice a mere whisper.

He tilted his head a little in response.

"Are we –" I didn't know how to put the feeling that penetrated my insides.

But he answered all the same. "We're fine", he said, squeezing my hand slightly.

I shot him a small smile, pulling the bed sheets closer around me with my free hand. Before I could utter any more concerns, he grabbed my other hand as well and turned around to me, pulling me close. Our eyes locked, his eyes darting over me for a second, before he inclined his head to place a gentle kiss on my forehead. He then let go of me and walked towards the bed, picking up his clothes.

My eyes followed him, my mouth slightly open, my mind racing, my heart hammering, even the voice of reason was silenced. _We are fine, huh? Well, way to go, mister, I can see that!_, I thought sarcastically. _Then why do I feel as if something was rammed between us? And I was wondering was tomorrow would bring, well, here we go, nothing new, as it seems._

As he finished gathering his clothes, he walked to his desk, grabbed his book-bag and shot me a last glance before he left the room, leaving me without another word. I needed a while before I came back to my senses. _What happened just now? Sure, I kind of blew our little get-together by acting extremely stupid, but hey, I remember that those last days were proof that that was my normal behaviour. Why did he act as if – no, why did he make me _feel_ as if I did something wrong?_

And there I was, thinking I would finally get to know every side of Tom Riddle.

Breaking my stupor, I walked to the bed and picked up my clothes, got dressed and decided to question Tom's behaviour. _I think I have a right to do that! _With that I stormed after him. I found the bathroom empty, so I headed straight up into the Head common room. And there he was, standing by the notice board, all dressed in his black school robes, his hair combed neatly to one side.

He looked up seemingly surprised as I approached him.

"Tom, I – I think we have to talk –", I blurted out, knowing the moment the words had left my mouth, that it had been the worst approach possible to start like that.

"Ginny, I'm sorry, I'm already late. We talk later, alright?", he replied, snatching something off the board and pocketing it quickly, before he turned to leave.

"No, wait, this is –"

"We'll talk later", he merely said, his dark eyes boring into mine – and I soon found myself agreeing with him, unable to resist his intense stare.

I watched how he climbed through the portrait hole and vanished out of sight, leaving me gaping after him. I then turned around, ran down the stairs into his room, snatched my robe and followed him out into the castle. Students passed me in the hallways, eager to get into the Great Hall for breakfast or for early pre-class meetings and activities. I could only guess where Tom had to go to this early.

And so I wandered the corridors aimlessly, walked up and down various stairs, into dimly lit hallways, into the highest tower, into the darkest dungeon. I even walked twice around the greenhouses and the pumpkin patch by the forest. _No Tom_. I checked the Great Hall whenever I came past it, I walked around the shelves of the library for the umpteenth time, I even looked in the secret passages and every empty classroom.

I waited in front of classrooms for glimpses of people emerging, but again, no Tom. It was around lunchtime when my stomach gave an angry roar and I decided to go into the kitchens to grab something to eat. On my way to the ground floor, I saw groups of students walking towards the Great Hall – and amidst them a tall, black-haired figure crossing the front doors. _Tom_.

I leapt down the stairs and ran after him, trying to swallow the urge to call his name. As I exited the castle, a heavy snow storm whipped my face, ice-cold air punching the air out of my lungs. I pulled my robe closer around me and looked around for another sign of Tom. Thick flakes of snow turned the surroundings into a white nothingness, I couldn't even see the greenhouses from my place by the front doors.

As I thought to have seen a black something near the vegetable patch, I ran for it, my feet heavy in the high snow, my breath echoing in my ears. I followed the black something all the way around the castle until it stopped near the back of the greenhouses. It was then that I could see the face of it.

It was indeed Tom; he was standing in the middle of the snow storm, peering up into the sky as if counting the windows of the castle's towers. I approached him slowly, but as soon as I came into earshot, he moved again, walking with his head lowered towards the front doors. I leapt after him and couldn't stop myself anymore.

"TOM!", I screamed through the loud wind.

He stopped in mid-motion, yet didn't turn around.

"Why are you avoiding me?", I yelled as I came closer to him, snow flakes whipping past me.

He slowly turned around, facing me, his pale face flecked with red from the cold surrounding us. "Ginny?", he simply asked, watching me in mild surprise.

"Why are you avoiding me?", I repeated, my fists clenched by my side.

He tilted his head, while the storm raged around us. "What are you talking about?", he replied, his voice raised over the volume of the wind.

"You know what I'm talking about! You're avoiding me! You don't want to talk to me. You leave without a word! What is wrong with you? What did I do?"

Every emotion stored inside was set free as I stood several feet away from him, the storm lashing around us, my voice ringing in the wind. Tom was watching me without any reaction, his eyes darted unblinkingly over me through the thick snow, flakes caught inside his hair, only the howl of the storm greeting the end of my words.

"Talk to me!", I yelled, tears burning inside my eyes, as he didn't seem to say anything.

He watched me for another moment, before he suddenly leapt forwards, his motion almost making me flinch. His icy hands closed around my face. Without another word or gaze, he then pressed his lips against mine, his move a spur of desperation. He kissed me with all his might, his hands holding my face firmly, while I just stood completely motionless in the snow, my heart jumping against my ribcage, my mind growing numb, the voice of reason yet again silenced.

As he drew back again, I saw a flicker of concern inside his dark eyes.

"I'm sorry", he said, barely audible over the rage of the storm surrounding us. "I didn't mean to avoid you. I'm just not good at talking."

I gave a snort and shot him a grin, before it was my turn to cup his face, before I closed my lips desperately around his, eager to feel his warmth in the cold penetrating my body. He wrapped his arms tightly around me and so we stood in the middle of a raging snow storm, snow flakes, pushed by an unnaturally strong wind, whipping past us.

Minutes, that seemed to last for hours, later, I found myself being led back into the dryer inside of the castle, my hand in Tom's, both of us soaked and covered in snow. I smiled up at him and couldn't care less.

"You know", I said as we entered the Entrance Hall. "The talking thing, I guess we both suck at it."

He grinned at me and gently pushed some snowflakes off my shoulders. "Looks like it", he said, walking me to the bottom of the marble staircase where we cherished the quiet of the castle and the lack of storm.

Compared to the raging wind outside, the Entrance Hall seemed almost soundproof if it wasn't for the occasional mix of clattering and talking coming from the Great Hall in which staff and students were having lunch. I watched Tom as he pulled out his wand and pointed it first at me and then at himself, both of us soon feeling dry and warm again. Pocketing his wand, Tom then placed his hand on my cheek, our eyes locking in the process, before he leant down and placed his lips gently on mine, a move of affection I hadn't expected coming from him in such a public place.

But apparently he couldn't care less also as he intensified the gesture, pulling me closer and kissing me nearly as desperate as he had done outside in the storm. I pulled my arms tightly around him and ignored the upcoming noises from the Great Hall. Lunch was seemingly over – not that it would matter to us anyway.

I just kissed the corner of his mouth as he pulled away slightly, eyeing me with a tiny smirk. I smiled up at him, my arms still wrapped around him.

"I have to go to Potions now", he said after a while of silently watching me, whilst groups of people passed by.

"Damn classes!", I muttered with a grin.

He merely nodded and quickly leant down to kiss me once more.

"So", I asked, as the still unnamed feeling inside made my stomach flip. "More sucky talking later?"

"Sure, meet me after Potions."

"I'll be there."

"See you then", he said – with no intention to let go of me.

I shot him a smile and leant up to kiss him, my cheek then resting against his as I tiptoed in front of him, my fingers absentmindedly messing up his hair. Kissing my cheek, he then drew back, his hands holding mine.

After another smile, he turned to leave towards the stairs leading into the dungeons. I watched him go, before I decided to spend the remaining time in the library.

Just as I turned around the nearest shelf leading into the Potions-section, I heard two voices that I was sure to have heard before.

"I can't believe it!", a female voice exclaimed angrily. "He actually did that! I thought my eyes would pop out of my head! That is so unlike him –"

"Just because he didn't make out with you in public –"

"Hey, watch your tongue, Lestrange!", the girl interrupted the male voice apparently belonging to the black-haired boy that was Lestrange.

"Whatever, Parkinson", he snorted and I heard a book being slammed shut. "More importantly, who is this girl he's making out in public with?"

"Oh, I know her! She's the girl he dum- I mean, she stole him from me, that stupid redhead!", the girl's voice, apparently belonging to the short, black-haired girl I had the pleasure to meet just recently.

Listening closely, I pressed myself against the shelf and carefully peered around to get a look at the two people talking about the newest gossip concerning Tom Riddle and his mysterious redhead. And there they were; sitting by a window in a dim corner of the library; Lestrange, the bony boy that Tom seemed to be calling a friend or at least follower, and Patricia Parkinson, the round girl who had caused my nose to look slightly different.

"I mean, did you see her before? Is she new or something?", Parkinson went on, oblivious to my eavesdropping presence.

"No idea, Malfoy said he hasn't seen her before – and he should know, having dated almost every Gryffindor girl around besides the Mudbloods", Lestrange said, flipping lazily through a book in front of him.

"You don't think she's a Mudblood?"

"No way. It's still Riddle we're talking about! He wouldn't make out with a Mudblood."

"True… but still, what do we know about this girl?"

"Nothing, but so what? I mean, I am not someone who keeps his eyes open for girls like her."

"Yeah, stupid Gryffindors." I saw Parkinson open the book in front of her without flipping pages or reading anything. "But this is going to bug me now!"

"Merlin's beard, woman. Get over it!" Lestrange leant back in his chair and heaved a sigh.

"Shut your face, Les! I mean, did you see it coming that Tom would dump me for her?"

"Well –"

"Well?", Parkinson screeched.

"Well, he did, didn't he?"

"AH!" The black-haired girl let out a high-pitched grunt.

"Keep it down. Remember, you're banned –"

"Don't worry, I modified old Sprout's memory a little and looky here, I'm her new favourite student."

Parkinson laughed icy with Lestrange nodding in admiration.

"So", she went on after a while, looking around for eavesdroppers (I dove behind the shelf immediately, my heart hammering inside my chest). "How's your plan coming along?"

Daring another look, I saw Lestrange shifting in his chair, equally looking around. "Well, the original plan's postponed, so is the other. We just have to wait."

"I hate to wait", the girl hissed, staring out of the window.

"There's nothing else we could do –"

"Oh, I think there is!"

Lestrange stared at the girl opposite him.

"Think about it!", she hissed under her breath, but loud enough to be heard.

"I am thinking about it, so what?"

"He played this right into our hands! It's perfect!"

"You mean –"

"Yes", Parkinson replied in a mysterious tone, a grin twitching her face. "Perfect!"

"You go, girl, I'll just follow your gut", Lestrange yawned.

"You'd better, this is –"

"Perfect, yeah, I get it."

Trying to get a better view, as something inside rose, my whole body on high voltage, I leant around the shelf – my hands holding onto it tightly. Too tightly. Suddenly the shelf swayed, I let out a tiny gasp, desperate to keep it steady – but too late. One of the higher books, only half-heartedly having put back on its shelf, fell right past my head and landed with a thundering noise on the floor.

_Time to leave!_

I quickly leapt backwards, eager to try to flee before anyone would notice me – as I suddenly felt a hand close around my shoulder, holding me back forcefully.

"Look who I found!", a snarl echoed in my ears, while my heart hammered inside my chest.

* * *

_**A/N:** Ooh, cliffy xD Hadn't had one in such a long time, eh? But don't worry, the other part of the chapter's been almost done too, so give or take 24 more hours and you'll have a new chapter, even though I hope you forgive me if the next chapter will come in two days tops because I have major studying right now, my English courses are quite demanding and unfortunately I won't be able to turn my writing this story into a grade or something xDD  
So, finally, damn, I hated ff dot net for the error that kept occuring - I just wasn't able to upload anything! But finally, at LAST, it's working again so... I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Remember, the next might take a little while., but only a little - unless ff dot net doesn't like me again...  
_

_**Bianca**: Hehe, it was longer, the longest chapter ever on this story, 4693 words! And this chapter had even more – hence the splitting up. And wow, thank you, I'm flattered xD I actually had a little trouble with writing that particular scene – I first wanted to do only pure snogging in the snoggiest way of snogging; but as this is still rated T I had to put in some plot and such xDDD Thanks again, I've missed your reviews, I have to write more I guess to get you writing xD_

_**Realm-creatress**: Thank you so much! I am so glad you liked that scene, I'm happy it had a lot of emotion and twists in it… pure snogging might be boring after a while, huh? Thanks for still reading this._

_All of you: Thank you everyone for the support even though the last update had been a while, more favs and alerts, great! Thank you everyone! Keep the reviews coming and might write more xD_

_**Disclaimer**: Nothing belongs to me. Yeah._


	18. A Bond Stronger Than Possession

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**Unfinished Business**

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"_Look who I found!", a snarl echoed in my ears, while my heart hammered inside my chest._

**Chapter 11.2**

I tried to free myself, but too late. Footsteps came closer and soon Parkinson and Lestrange stared at me with surprised expressions, while Malfoy held me tightly by the upper arm.

"Eavesdropping, huh?", the blond boy said, pushing me towards the other two, before brushing his hands on his robes with a disgusted look on his pointy face. "Spying for your boyfriend?"

I stared around at the three Slytherins, my heart stuck in my throat, making it impossible to utter anything.

"He sure isn't her boyfriend", Parkinson told Malfoy, eyeing me with disgust. "He wouldn't be that stupid!"

"Interesting to see you here, redhead", Lestrange went on, taking a step towards me.

I felt utterly uncomfortable, standing in the middle of these three figures that certainly weren't the company one wished to have. I looked around for a route to run away, but every path was blocked by either a body, a shelf or a table. I was trapped.

"Yeah, tell us, what are you doing here and not in the arms of dear Riddle?"

I stared at the three of them, my eyes narrowed. Before I – or the people staring at me – could do or say anything, I heard a faint whisper from the other end of the library. Thank Merlin! Other people, sane people! Help was so close. _You only have to scream –_

It was then that Lestrange pulled me into a half-nelson, his hand pressed tightly onto my mouth, while his other arm twisted my neck. His movement came so unexpectedly that I couldn't even fight him. Unable to move in his grip, I only heard him hiss a command to the other two.

"Malfoy, watch the exit, Pat, keep the others away."

"Remember the plan", the girl said with a laugh before she and Malfoy parted into different directions, whilst Lestrange pulled me into the niche he and Parkinson had been sitting in only moments ago.

There he let go of me, pushing me firmly into one of the chairs, his eyes darting over me. I opened my mouth to say anything, maybe even scream for help, but he already had his hand tightly over my mouth again before I could utter any syllable. His bony face looked even more ill from up close, the long red line, that was still looming on his cheek, turning it into a deadly looking mask. His eyes, however, stared right into mine, deep pools of grey and blue.

"Who are you?", he hissed, while leaning over me.

I raised an eyebrow, the only thing I could do in my pitiful position.

Lestrange seemed to notice my immobility, as he slowly let go of my mouth. "Do not dare to scream, redhead! Now tell me who you are!"

I stared up at him, my lips pressed tightly together, even though my heart was leaping against my ribcage in panic.

"Who are you?", Lestrange repeated, his hand grabbing my hair violently. "Come on, you don't really want me to hurt you, do you?"

I continued staring at him – what proved to be harder with every second as he pulled brutally on my hair. Before long I couldn't keep the tears from burning in my eyes as pain rushed from my skull through my veins.

"Your name, redhead!", he hissed, his face suddenly very close to my mine.

The scratch on his cheek twitched with every word he uttered, causing me to stare at it in disgust. It also made me think of something.

"How did you get that scratch?", I then asked, my voice shaking terribly, yet I did my best to remain as calm as possible.

The sudden change of topic seemed to irritate him. "None of your business!"

"And why are you so keen on knowing who I am? That's none of your business also!"

That earned me a slap on the cheek, so brutal my head turned sideways from the impact. Pain built up inside my head once more, blinding me for the moment. _By Merlin_, I would endure the same force by the name of Lestrange several years from now, back in my time, when I encountered this boy's son and daughter-in-law. _Oh the odds…_

"Will you talk now?"

"Gi-Ginny", I muttered, trying to pull myself together again as I turned my head around to stare into Lestrange's eyes.

He shot me an arrogant grin that distorted his entire face. "See, wasn't that difficult, now, was it, Ginny?"

I pressed my lips together, ignoring the pain shooting through my cheek.

"So, next question, what are you doing here?"

"What do you mean?", I said through gritted teeth, my eyes boring into his.

"I mean you clearly are not a regular student here at Hogwarts, I can't remember having seen you before."

"There are almost 300 hundred students at Hogwarts, I don't think you can keep track of every one", I replied, keeping my voice low.

Lestrange raised an eyebrow. "I really don't like to hear that tone from you, redhead!", he hissed threateningly, inclining his bony head as he did so.

"I'm just saying", I mumbled, daring to look around him for anyone nearby to help.

"I don't think you are in the position to say anything, redhead", he went on, clearly enjoying to hold me hostage. _Jerk_.

I looked back at him, the pain in my cheek slowly spreading and numbing, my mind racing, my heart still hammering against my ribcage. I had to get out of here. Out of this stupid situation. _Who was he, anyway, to question me like that? Just because I overheard his conversation? Did I say jerk?_

"Well, what do you want from me?", I then asked, drawing together every piece of courage left inside my body, my eyes fixed on his.

"You do not eavesdrop on people's conversations."

"Even if said conversations are about me?"

That earned me yet another slap on the cheek, harder this time, numbing me for almost an entire minute, pain shooting through my head, my eyes watering – and yet I merely shook my head carefully and continued staring at him.

"You do not eavesdrop!", he repeated in a hissing voice.

I glared at him – _bad move to be honest_ – before he seized me by the collar of my blouse, lifting me a little off the chair I was sitting on. My hands closed around his, as I tried desperately to free myself – just as a high-pitch voice echoed through the library.

"Les!"

Clearly Patty Parkinson had detected some disturbance. _Thank Merlin_!

He unceremonially let go of me and I dropped back into the chair, panting slightly as I watched him shooting me a last glare before he turned around and walked away, his footsteps echoing through the aisles. The moment he was out of sight, I couldn't help but bury my face in my hands, my hurting cheek burning underneath my touch.

I needed almost twenty minutes to recover, before I stood up from the chair I had been left in and walked slowly around the shelves, listening hard, until I cautiously left the library, my left cheek throbbing painfully. Avoiding any groups of people – which caused to take many u-turns and shortcuts throughout the castle in order to get to the dungeons – I then stood in front of the door leading into the Potions classroom, waiting for Tom.

Minutes I didn't count later, the door burst open and several students left the dimly lit room; Tom apparently took his time as he was the last to exit the classroom. He spotted me at once, a silent flicker dancing inside his dark eyes as he approached me. Before I could say anything, his eyes had darted over my hurting face, concern immediately spreading over his handsome features.

"What happened?", he asked right away, grabbing my hand to pull me closer and carefully placing his free hand on my left cheek, tilting his head as he did so.

"Nothing", I said promptly, eyeing him. "Just ran against a wall."

He raised an eyebrow. "So the wall had fingers?"

"What?" _Oh no, could you really see Lestrange's palm print on my cheek? Damn._

"You look as if you've been slapped."

"No, I haven't –"

"Ginny", Tom said, furrowing his forehead. "Don't lie to me."

"I don't –"

"Who slapped you?", he went on, examining my cheek in the dim light of the dungeons.

"Nobody, I told you –"

"Ginny, come on, you can tell me", he said, watching me closely.

"I don't think I –"

Luckily, in just that moment, a voice arose behind us. I looked over Tom's shoulder to see –

"Professor Slughorn?", I mouthed, remembering the round and bald Potions teacher with the enormous walrus-like moustache I had in my fifth year at Hogwarts; yet this version of him looked much younger, with straw-coloured hair all around his face.

Tom raised an eyebrow before he turned his head to see his teacher.

"Tom! I forgot to tell you that – oh, hello", the large man interrupted himself, as his eyes darted over to me.

Tom dropped his hand and turned around, his other hand still holding mine.

"What a lovely little lady you got there", Slughorn said, reminding me a lot of the Slughorn of my time.

"Good day, sir", I said politely.

He nodded, smiling broadly, before he remembered what he had come out of the classroom for. "Tom, just wanted to remind you that there's a little party tonight, celebrating the end of the year so to say. You're coming, aren't you?", he asked, watching Tom hopefully. Before Tom could, however, respond, Slughorn went on. "And I hope you'll bring your little friend. Everyone will bring guests. Come as well, my dear, it'll be fun!"

Tom merely nodded and Slughorn gave a little bow and vanished back into the room.

"We do not have to go", Tom then said, but I merely grinned up at him.

"Why not? That'll be fun", I replied.

Tom eyed me for a second. "So you know Professor Slughorn?", he then asked, his voice a notch too serious.

I nodded. "He was the Potions teacher of my fifth year."

"Interesting", Tom replied, his forehead furrowed.

"I know it's weird, but … um, no but, it _is _weird that I already know the future Slughorn… but what can I do?", I babbled, tilting my head. "He's bald then, you know?"

Tom watched me for a moment, before a smirk broke from his lips. "I guess it'll be nice", he then said. "Going to the party I mean…"

"But I don't want to force you or anything, I'm just saying", I said quickly, hooking my arm into his. "I mean, if you don't want to… um, parade… me, you know?"

His smirk turned into a smile. "I think it's a little late for that, isn't it?"

"Oh, yeah, right, um… true", I stammered, blushing slightly, remembering the scene that had caused a lot of gossip to spread. "And, well, are you okay with that?"

"What? To parade you around?"

"Um, yeah."

"Why shouldn't I?", he said with a genuine smile, watching me.

That earned him a spontaneous yet thoroughly wanted embrace as I pulled my arms around him tightly, burying my face in his chest as I did so. This was too good to be true… wasn't it? _Yes, it was – remember Lestrange_ … Crap.

Tom slowly hugged me back, his chin resting on my head. "But before there's any partying you have to tell me who slapped you. Patty again?"

I heaved a sigh and leant my head back to watch him, him mentioning my cheek brought back the pain immediately. I decided to say the only possible thing that would keep me away from more trouble.

"Yes."

No, not the truth – _but it was close, wasn't it?_ I just couldn't mention that I knew Lestrange – that would make Tom suspicious – something I really didn't want to happen. I watched him looking at me, before a frown crept onto his features.

"And you really want to go to Slughorn's party?", he then asked, tilting his head.

"Yes, why not?"

"Well, Patty will be there and I don't know if it would be wise to –"

"That would be exactly what she wants! Me to surrender! Us to split up! No, Tom, let's face it –", I began, courage forming up inside me – until I suddenly, just as if being hit by a stroke of lightening, recalled my situation, my being here. "Unless… I mean, it's totally up to you. I mean, I shouldn't … um, I mean, who am I to tell you what to –"

"Ginny, it's fine", he interrupted me with a smile. "You know what I learned these last days?"

"Um, no?" I couldn't help but gape at his sudden change of topic.

"I learned that there can be trust in places you don't expect to be."

_Could you be any more cryptic?_ I raised an eyebrow.

His lips curled slightly. "What I'm trying to say is that I am… amazed that you put so much trust into me. A couple of days ago, when we first met, I wasn't really nice to you; I – well, let's say that's not in my nature anyway – I would have thought you would never stay with me – even after your memory came back. But you did, you trusted me from the beginning, even though I thought I proved myself quite untrustworthy –"

_He's right_, the voice of reason chimed in. _You were completely naïve!_

Shut up, I'm trying to listen to him!

"– you know, I never met someone who could trust so easily. I myself am not really able to… well, trust anyone –"

"Do you trust me?", I interrupted him, taking in every syllable of his words as my eyes bored into his.

He replied my gaze and gave a short nod. "I guess I'm on the verge of trusting you –"

_Yay_!

I shot him a smile and lowered my gaze, feeling my cheeks redden as the thought sank in. Tom Riddle trusted me. _Do you know what that means? Do you, stupid voice of reason? _I quickly looked up again and saw him watching me closely, a nervous spark dancing inside his dark eyes.

"Trust is good, you know?", I said grinning.

"I hope so", he said, his voice almost unnoticeably stern.

Tilting my head, I suddenly realized the dilemma of his being. Trust. Such a big word for someone like him; orphaned, left alone, misunderstood. It surely meant a lot that he was on the verge of trusting me; me of all, me who he had met only days ago. It was as if the bond – we had had before, back in my time, me and the diary-Tom – had turned around; changing the possessor and the possessed into something completely harmless, something… stronger than possession. A bond of another kind, a bond I wasn't sure how to name yet…

Instead of a reply, I merely leant up to him and placed a tender kiss on his cheek, before playing absentmindedly with the front of his robes, my eyes still fixed on his.

"But what I don't get", he said after a while, his hands supporting the small of my back while he looked down at me. "Why did you stay? Why did… why do you trust me?"

I watched him for a second. "I thought you knew –"

"Actually no, I don't." _Don't let suspicion rise!_

"Well, first I didn't really know anyone … here, in this time, so I kind of had to stick with you – but, and that's a big but, I told you how that changed. I told you that I… I liked your company, still do, that I… well, believe it or not, you made my staying here easier –" _Oh the irony! The one who brought me here in the first place making it easier! _"I trust you because I know that you can be trusted."

_What?_, yelled the voice of reason. _Have you gone mental? Is he possessing you again?_

"It's true", I answered both the voice of reason and Tom's doubtful gaze. "I felt that you are someone who was worth trusting. You deserve to be trusted, Tom", I finished, watching him with a smile.

He, on the other hand, was simply staring at me, as if not believing a word of what I just told him. _I think he looked the same as you had told him why you are here…_ I tried to emphasise my words by placing my hands on his chest, moving even closer to him as we stood on the dimly lit corridor of the dungeons. Heaving an almost audible sigh, I then tiptoed in front of him and closed my lips around his, before I rested my head against his shoulder.

"One day, you'll know what that means", I then whispered against him, feeling his arms tighten around me.

"I already do", came his quiet answer.

Something leapt from my heart, making me smile against him. "I'm glad", I breathed, before I looked up at him.

Our gazes met, whereas soon after our lips collided. I held tightly onto him, ignoring the nagging of the voice of reason. Once we let go of each other again, I shut not only the voice of reason but also broke the silence hovering between me and Tom.

"Alright, so how's the dress code for this party tonight?", I asked with a grin spreading on my face.

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_**A/N: **Yay, new chapter, cliffy solved and everyone's happy, right? Well I hope so! I sacrificed my Tuesday evening for this so you better like it xDD Kidding, am happy to have presented you this new chapter, hope you enjoyed it!_

_So, like I said in the last chapter, I am kinda busy at the moment, and now I am also sick, having the flu right now, horrible, so I really should be in bed by now, but nooo, I had to write this chapter for you guys xD Not that I would mind anyway!_

_**Bianca**: Hehe, you guessed right: it was Malfoy xD Well, there is only one person able to do the typical snarl, right? Only one named Malfoy (first name unknown and unimportant xD) So it's thousand chocolate dollars for you! (I'm a poor student, bear that in mind xD). So, hm, about the apparently confusing part with Parkinson and Lestrange, well, I can't say much at this point but: they are plotting, something, against someone, la la la… it's coming up, don't worry, it's still too subtle to be understood I guess xD Aww and thank you for liking the snow storm kiss, it was my fully intention to do this scene just like those rain kisses, I love those moments in movies, soo cheesy and yet, awww… well, you know xD  
My new apartment is awesome by the way, no parents sneaking around etc, it's fun to live on your own, even though I have to clean and wash and tidy up all by myself… but well xD And speaking of parents: I was so shocked when I read that your parents are getting divorced, that must be terrible. How are you holding up? Are you okay? Let me hug you! _

_**Tabasco03**: Updated xD Yeah, cliff-hangers are bad and the author using them too often should be tortured… ahem… xDDD Hehe, about Lestrange saying "You go, girl" – well, note the yawning-part xD It's how he said it, so I guess you can still think that a Slytherin would talk like that if he still looks bored while doing it xD And hell yeah, I make everything work because I am the (mean and nice) authoress, cool, huh? Thank you very much for your review!_

_**Disclaimer**: FAN fiction, FAN is me, fiction is somebody else's, JKR's to be exact. I'm just borrowing, I swear xD__  
_


	19. The Dance With The Devil

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**

Unfinished Business

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**Chapter 12.1**

"Wow, this is ancient!", I gasped as I looked at the dark green dress Tom had given me. Not only did it have absolutely no waist but also did it have shoulder pads! And do not get me started on the fabric or the rim that almost covered my ankles!

"What?", I then heard Tom's voice calling from his room while I turned myself in front of the bathroom mirror.

"Nothing", I called back, putting my hands on my hips and inclining my head. "Everything's fine!"

_Well, it was my own fault_… Tom had told me that the party was just a casual get-together, no dresses, no fancy food and probably not even dancing. Yeah, well, but I still had insisted on a dress… _stupid!_

"Are you ready yet?", Tom asked through the bathroom door.

"Almost!"

I checked my reflection for the last time, tried to get my hair straight (as it seemed to be charged due to the fabric of the dress) and finally turned to the door with a sigh. As I opened the door, I saw Tom standing on the small corridor, casually dressed in black trousers, a white shirt and a black jacket. And like I had expected, a grin crept onto his features as he eyed me.

"Don't laugh", I mouthed as I rushed past him, the dress swirling around my body like a tent.

"I'm sorry", he grinned, watching me. "That was all I could come up with –"

"I bet", I muttered, sitting down on the bed to get into my shoes.

"Shall I fix it?"

That made me look up with a hoping smile. "Just a little would be great."

"Thought so", he said and walked towards me. "Stand up."

I did, the sack of a dress puffing up around me. Tom raised his wand and pointed it at the dress – and in the next moment I felt it tighten around me.

"Oh! A waist!", I gasped and ran my hands over my sides. "Thank you!"

He smiled slightly, pocketing his wand slowly. I walked towards him and stopped right in front of him.

"May I help you as well?", I then asked, eyeing his shirt.

"If you must", he merely said, watching me closely.

I raised my hands to his collar and unbuttoned the first three buttons, making him look even more casual. "Either that or it's a tie", I grinned, leaning against him, my arms, covered in emerald long-sleeves, around his neck as I did so.

"So we're ready now?"

"I guess", I whispered, locking eyes with him. "Do you still want to go?"

Tom merely nodded, before leaning down to kiss me. Our lips parted what seemed to be hours later, as he took my hand and put it gently on his forearm, about to escort me outside. I smiled up at him and tried to ignore the silly dress – just another disguise for the quest I was on.

We left the Head common room and walked the cold and deserted corridors to a room somewhere on the base level of the castle where I could already hear old-fashioned music echo around. As we arrived in front of Slughorn's office I could see small groups of people standing around the more or less crammed room. Whereas Slughorn's office looked less crammed and still unsorted back in my time, the office of this time's Slughorn looked like a small tearoom, with armchairs and tables all around, with bookshelves framing the walls, there was also a huge fireplace and a table where a tremendously large gramophone stood, blasting scratchy music through the room.

And even though there were merely ten people in the room, it already felt packed and stepping from the cold corridor into the heated office was a bit of a shock at first. Tom led me past the gramophone towards a set of tables loaded with drinks and snacks. He automatically grabbed two glasses of what seemed to be wine, handed me one and looked around afterwards.

It was then that my gaze wandered around the room and over the people within. There was no familiar face – luckily Lestrange and company decided to be late – and only the walrus-like moustache of Tom's Potions teacher was a sign that we were in the right place. As Slughorn noticed us, he came walking towards us with a huge smile on his round face.

"Tom", he greeted happily and inclined his head so that his straw-colored hair flipped around his face. "And your little friend –"

"Ginny", I answered with a smile.

"Ginny! Well, welcome to you, as I see you've already found the wine table, good, very good. Well, have fun you two and enjoy the evening!", he then said, rather hastily, as his eyes darted already over our shoulders to new guests as I assumed.

We watched him leave – or rather hop away from – us, before exchanging a quick glance. Tom then nodded towards a comfortable looking couch occupying one corner of the room, where we found ourselves soon after sitting closely together, Tom's arm around my shoulders as I leant against him, both of us watching the scene around us, occasionally sipping the wine in our hands.

"Not too bad, isn't it?", I then said, watching his profile.

He merely nodded.

"No suspicious interrogations, no annoying questions, nothing whatsoever. It's just us and –", I went on, until my mouth went dry as I saw Tom's so-called friends spotting us from the other side of the room.

As I tried to keep calm, I observed how Tom would react. As he noticed Lestrange wave to them over the heads of the few people actually dancing in the stickiness of the room, he nodded courtly, before rather unexpectedly jumping up, and offering me his hand. _Huh?_

I watched him with my mouth slightly open, yet grabbed his hand as quickly as possible. Getting rid of our wine glasses in the same motion, I then found myself being dragged towards the dance floor – or whatever you might call the crammed place where people tried to move around to the scratchy music echoing around them. _He wasn't really about to dance, now was he? Tom Riddle a dancer?_

"May I?", he then asked, definitely surprising me with that move.

_You learn something new every day… _

Tom put one hand on my waist, while his other held my hand, and together, standing very close, we began to waltz around the crammed space. _A nice distraction from the eyes lingering on our backs. _I inclined my head a little as I locked eyes with Tom, my hand casually lying on his shoulder as he guided me around. A tiny smile seemed to break from his lips as his hand wandered to the small of my back, pulling me even closer to him. I replied his smile and for a moment, there was nothing else but him, no nosy people staring at us, no whispering voices exchanging gossip, no plans being plotted.

_Speaking of which_…, the voice of reason suddenly chimed in.

_You always have to ruin everything!_, I thought with a sigh and leant my head against Tom, our cheeks pressed together while we continued to waltz around. My eyes occasionally flew over people watching us and the other dancers, yet as I met a gray-blue pair, I felt a shiver running down my spine despite the heat of the crowded room. I quickly looked away, but too late.

Trying to save the moment, I urged Tom to move into the other direction.

"What's wrong?", he asked, as I continually stepped onto his foot in order to get him where I wanted.

"I just want to see what's over there", I replied with a stiff grin. "Sorry for stepping on your feet…"

"Never mind", he said and held me closer again.

And as we continued dancing to the music spreading from the gramophone, I felt that I couldn't prevent the situation, I was afraid was about to happen, any longer. Closer and closer I saw Lestrange finding his way through the crowded room, his eyes fixed upon Tom's back before he suddenly stood beside us, tapping Tom on the shoulder.

"Excuse me", he said, making us stop in mid-motion.

Tom peered over his shoulder and I felt him stiffening immediately. "Lestrange", he simply said, before guiding me a step forwards.

Yet Lestrange wouldn't give way and cleared his throat. "I hope I'm not being bolt but may I have this dance now?", he asked, making Tom stare at him, whilst I felt goosebumbs on my skin. _Oh no! Please don't –_

But Tom had already loosened his grip around me, casting me an apologetic look, before he turned to Lestrange with a glare as solid as words could have been, clearly saying to keep his hands away. A gesture I found somehow absolutely charming, even in the horrid situation I was about to be in.

Lestrange shot him a grin, before he offered me his hand (which I didn't take, whereupon he simply grabbed mine). Tom and I exchanged glances. _Oh these stupid traditions!_ In my time there would have been no such thing as unspoken rules about how to be a gentleman and how it was normal to share your dance partner with everyone asking politely enough. There might have been a few hexes, weird looks or nose punches, but clearly no giving way so easily as the scene I witnessed.

But what was done, was done – and so I watched Tom leaving the dance floor with an expression I found hard to interpret, yet somehow had a feeling as to what might be going on inside him.

"Alone again, redhead", I heard Lestrange say as soon as Tom had turned towards the wine table. "I can't believe how lucky I am!"

Feeling him grab my waist forcefully, I shot him a glare, only affectedly placing my hand on his shoulder, as he began moving me around.

"So", he then came clear to the purpose of his intrusion. "How do we want to make dear Riddle jealous?"

I gaped up into his bony face. _Make Tom jealous? But –_

"Or did you tell him about our little encounter in the library?", he then asked, his hand running along my back, downwards, while he whispered into my ear.

I leant back abruptly, continuing to stare and say nothing.

"So you didn't, then? Good girl… don't want your man to draw wrong conclusions, eh?"

_What was he up to?_ Holding me closer with every step he urged me around, Lestrange grinned down at me, the red line on his cheek casting a weird shadow on his face in the dim light of Slughorn's office/party room.

"What do you want?", I then hissed, staring up at him, desperate to keep him at bay.

"Don't you see?", he hissed right back, moving his face closer to mine.

I frowned, turning my head to get away from him, my eyes soon finding Tom, as he sat on the couch we had left, his eyes unblinkingly on Lestrange.

"So why didn't you tell him about us?", the bony faced boy whispered again, his hand now positively resting on my backside.

I let go of his shoulder and grabbed said hand to move it up, which he falsely interpreted as a failed spin, before he whirled me around quickly, until we followed the flow of the music again (_which happened to be slow… for heaven's sake!_); now both of hands remained pressed onto my back, while mine clang lifelessly onto his shoulders, my eyes boring into his, as I felt disgust welling up inside me.

"That's none of your business!", I then hissed back.

Lestrange raised an eyebrow and span me around so that his back was facing the couch Tom was sitting on. Using the crowded space and Tom's blocked view, he suddenly sized my backside and pressed me violently against him, making me flinch and flush. I gaped up at him in shock.

"Listen, don't mistake me for someone caring about your business", he hissed, his breath hot on my cheek as he leant closer. "But I'm warning you to mess with mine!"

_What the heck was that supposed to mean?_ I pressed my palms against his shoulders to push him away slightly, my eyes narrowed by the time we were face to face.

"Why should I care about your business?"

"Because I know you're nosy", he replied coldly, still moving me around the crowded space.

I stared at him, but he soon looked over my shoulder, his face softening visibly.

"So, any idea how to make your lover jealous?", he said conversationally, making me frown in surprise at his sudden change of topic and attitude.

"Why would you want to make Tom jealous?"

"Because I'm evil, dear", Lestrange whispered and grinned in a way that emphasized his words.

I raised an eyebrow, even though the shiver running along my spine was back.

"And because he doesn't need you by his side", he went on, quieter than usual and almost as if muttering to himself. I watched him closely. "He has greater things to achieve!"

"Oh, has he?", I questioned his last outburst, highly interested.

Yet he seemed to have noticed his mistake and narrowed his eyes immediately. "Your nosiness will get you nowhere!", he hissed and whirled me around once more, until he suddenly let go of me and almost pushed me to the edge of the dance floor, a creepy smile looming on his bony face as he almost yelled over the soft music.

"Don't forget what happened between us in the library, Ginny!"

With that he turned around and vanished behind several people. I gaped after him, before I turned around a little disorientated – as I noticed Tom standing near by, watching me with his expression cold and unreadable.

* * *

_**A/N:** Can you trust your eyes? Yes, you can. I am back. Really, here I am, sitting at my mother's computer (because I'm at home for the summer), typing more new chapters. I am actually back. After 4 months!! It feels great... hell, yeah, I missed Tom and Ginny and finally found the time to continue this very confusing story xD_

_And I'll update with a major cliffhanger, haha, evil me! But don't worry, chapters 20 and 21 are on their way as well! One's already written and waiting to be uploaded, the other (a larger one with major plot shifting in it) a work in progress..._

_As for my absence I might owe you an explanation: I was busy. Yes, as easy as that. And I am terribly sorry I was. I shouldn't have been busy, I know! But I was. Due to university. My first semester is over now and I'm enjoying my holidays right now, which means: loads of time for writing more about Tom and Ginny! Yay!_

_So, I really, really hope you still want to read about them... and I really really hope you'll forgive my absence and lack of updates and whatnot. I AM TERRIBLY SORRY you had to wait! I also hope (yes, I'm hoping a lot today) that the next chapters will be worth the wait... as for now there's no snogging unfortunately... but we'll see, right? xD_

_I am also really grateful for the reviews that kept coming even though I wasn't updating the story. THANK YOU EVERYONE for the support!! I hope you're still with me! THANK YOU to: GoldenFawkes, Starongie, Aquiriis, TealSkky, Bianca and everyone else reading and reviewing! YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!_


	20. Of Little Things One Would Call Emotions

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Unfinished Business

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"_Don't forget what happened between us in the library, Ginny!"_

_With that he turned around and vanished behind several people. I gaped after him, before I turned around a little disorientated – as I noticed Tom standing near by, watching me with his expression cold and unreadable._

**Chapter 12.2**

"Tom!", I said and walked towards him, a smile on my lips.

He watched me silently as I approached, and I suddenly had the distant feeling that he had heard what Lestrange had yelled before he had left. And deep within I suddenly knew that that bony faced boy had won. Jealously was plastered all over Tom's face. _Oh this was bad…_

"Tom", I began again, reaching out to touch him, but he had already turned away and walked past me, through the crowded room. "TOM!", I cried out, before I followed him quickly, almost tripping over the low rim of my dress.

I caught up with him as he had already left the room, his steps echoing through the deserted corridor.

"Tom!", I called again, my voice reverberating from the stone walls.

He stopped visibly torn, his hands deep in his pockets, his head twitching slightly to the side. I hurried to him breathlessly. As he turned around to me, I could see his face still as mask-like as it had been in Slughorn's office. _Showing emotions was still not a gift of Tom Riddle's…_

"Tom, talk to me", I then pleaded, watching him closely. "Why are you walking away from me?"

"Why did Lestrange say that?" His voice was stiff, yet I could sense an undertone that was showing more than his face was displaying.

I tilted my head. "Because I did meet him in the library", I then said, deciding to stick as close to the truth as I could.

"And what exactly happened between you there?", Tom went on, the undertone growing stronger with every word.

"Nothing", I lied, not quite sure whether it was clever to do so. "I just ran into him. He's a jerk, really."

Tom eyed me suspiciously, his eyes narrowed. "You ran into him?"

"Yes, I wanted to spend some time in the library before I was to meet you after your Potions class –"

"So you met him this morning?"

"Yes, and I accidentally ran into him and there he was with that Parkinson girl –"

"Who slapped you…", Tom said quietly, watching me even more closely.

_The truth? _"Yes." _No._

"Why did he know your name?"

That caught me a little off guard. "He… um, he… asked me", I simply said, knowing as soon as I had said it that I was about to drown in my own lake of lies.

Tom merely looked at me.

"Tom", I tried again. "Nothing happened. I have no idea why he said that or why he wanted to dance with me. I don't even know him beside that one encounter in the library, I swear!"

Before I could defend myself a little more, there were footsteps echoing through the corridor and a group of high-heeled girls were about to pass us, in their midst – as I noticed with a squeeze of my heart – Patricia Parkinson. They went passed us without a glance or word, yet it was Tom who turned after them.

"Patty!", he called with an ice-cold voice that resounded in the corridor.

The group of girls stopped and silence washed over the scene as Patty turned around to face Tom, anger visible on her round face. She exchanged a glance with the other girls, who, whispering wildly to each other, went on without her, as Patty slowly walked towards Tom.

"What is it, Riddle?", she replied coldly.

"I told you not to mess with me", he said.

"I have no idea what you are talking about."

"Keep your tongue, Parkinson, you know what I mean."

"Sorry, Riddle, not everyone can read minds", Patty said, semi-angry, semi-confused.

I watched them feeling like a ghost again, my presence seemed to be highly uninteresting to either of them. And standing beside them, I was wondering was Tom was up to. As suddenly realization struck me, literally.

"I told you to leave me alone", Tom was just saying, staring at the shorter black-haired girl opposite him. "And walking around slapping other people is not really following what I told you!"

_Oh no…_

Patty's eyes narrowed as she stared up at Tom. "First of all, Riddle, I don't follow orders! And second, who did I slap that you care about?"

_Oh dear…_

"Don't play dumber than you are", Tom said and tilted his head towards me.

Patty suddenly became aware of my presence and pressed her lips into an angry, thin line, her eyes even narrower by now, her fists clenched by her sides, as she turned back to Tom.

"Did little redhead come running to you, then? Nosy, filthy girl! I only punched her once, Riddle, and I don't regret anything! She deserved it! And I should punch you too but –" She stopped in mid-sentence, exhaling loudly. "But never mind, she got what she deserved. So why should I ran after her, slapping her, huh? She doesn't deserve _that_ kind of attention, now does she?"

Tom considered the black-haired girl's face for a moment. "Get out of my way and stay there", he then said quietly, but coldly, before he turned around and walked away.

I remained standing with Patty for only a second, before she, too, turned to leave, not without throwing me a wicked smile. Frowning, yet suddenly understanding, I then leapt after Tom, who I caught up with by the marble staircase.

"Tom", I called after him as I came into earshot.

He didn't turn around but stopped, standing by the bottom of the stairs, looking up into the dark, deserted castle.

"Tom, I –"

"Why did you lie to me?", he said, his voice very quiet and sinisterly calm.

I felt how shock made my heart miss a beat. I was suddenly aware of the cold around and knew that it would be a very difficult task to get back onto a warmer path. I sighed deeply.

"I –"

"WHY DID YOU LIE TO ME?", Tom suddenly yelled, turning around, his face distorted by anger, his voice echoing loudly along the castle.

I literally jumped a little backwards, my mouth dropping open, as I looked at Tom, fear and grief running through my veins. _Now you've done it!_, the voice of reason came back, nagging. _I can still fix this! I hope…_

"Tom, I'm sorry, I really am. I didn't mean to… keep still about that… but –"

"_But_?", he hissed, his jaw clenched, his eyes narrow.

"But… oh, there is no but, I feel bad, Tom, I do, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I –"

"Well, how about telling me now?", he urged, his voice cold again.

"I'm about to!", I replied, a notch too livid myself. "I met Lestrange… once before I ran into him in the library this morning, and I also ran into… Malfoy… and both of them seemed suspicious about who I was… and when I walked into the library this morning, they were there with Patty and they questioned me and Lestrange slapped me and – and I have no idea why I hadn't told you that… I just assumed, them being your friends, you wouldn't want to hear that and –"

"How you do know they are my friends?"

"I… I saw you together once…"

"Were you following me?"

"No!" _Oh dear, you're knee-deep right now…_ "No, I was just walking around the grounds when I saw you and some others boys… you were too far away, but I recognized Lestrange and Malfoy and –" _Still lying? You think that's wise?_ "And … well, I know I was stupid to have run into them. I should have avoided them. Oh I shouldn't have come with you tonight, I really shouldn't have done all this… I –"

Tom watched me silently, and even though his face had softened a little, I could still feel his anger.

"Tom, I'm sorry. I want you to trust me… even though I don't seem trustworthy right now…"

He considered me with another glance, before he lowered his eyes, his jaw clenching again, even though there was a change in the way he did so. Breathing in deeply, he then turned back at me, eyeing me.

"That dress does look hideous on you", he then broke the silence hanging between us.

I gaped at him, before I couldn't help but grin. _You lucky witch… that is unbelievable! _Ha, stunned the voice of reason! _A second chance? Did he really just give you a second chance? Unbelievable!_

"It does, doesn't it?", I replied as I tilted my head. "Tom, I'm –"

"Forget it", he said and began to ascend the stairs, moving slowly enough to show me to follow him.

And as we climbed the stairs in silence, I was wondering how this story would continue, this story, our story. The story that would, if all would fail, end in a future that I had hoped to never see again. Sure, it wasn't that big a deal that I had told Tom a little lie in order to stay on his good side. Normal people would be over it in no time. The lie wasn't even that big, it wasn't even a lie. I just hadn't told him how I had met his little followers. How I had followed him…

I now realized that it had been wrong to sneak on him in order to get done what I had planned. I now knew that my plan had been nothing but a bad plan. I now saw my mistake and I hoped, hoped with all my might, that this mistake would not screw everything up. From now on, my focus should not lie on preventing the future from happening, but on evening out the present. I had not known how difficult a personality Tom Riddle was. I had thought that to be on his good side was all there is to it. But no, I had to gain his trust – which, again, he wouldn't offer too lightly.

We reached the portrait to the Head common room not having said a word in all the time. And we continued to go in silence as Tom climbed through the hole in the wall, entering the dark common room. The portrait closed behind me, while I watched Tom already descending the stairs. I followed him slowly, my head spinning from the amount of old and new thoughts whirling around. I had been so naïve to focus on the end of this story, the end that I had to change, when all this time, it had been right in front of my nose what needed changing. It was the present; and to change the future, one had to begin in the present… Reaching the landing, I saw Tom standing in the open door to his room, his head bowed a little, his eyes seemingly closed.

As I approached him, I knew what to do. _Get back on his good side, show him that you really care _– even though I felt as if stepping into the lion's den. I had underestimated him, despite my knowing that he was a complicated person, miserable, lonely, misunderstood, I had forgotten that he was also easily influenced by these little things one would call emotions.

And even though he was unlikely to show any of them directly, I knew they were there, bubbling below the surface and it didn't need much to make them burst. I had to be careful from now on…

I stopped in the door frame, a little away from him as he was holding the door, and watched him closely. As he noticed my presence, he slowly raised his head, his eyes still lowered, yet I saw his eyes briefly flickering over me. He exhaled quietly, before he finally fully faced me. Our eyes met and I now saw the emotions burning inside him.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you", he then said, his voice almost audible, his gaze unblinkingly.

Instead of replying anything, I decided to show him how I felt by stepping into the room and gently putting my hand on his. The tiny gesture seemed to do the trick as he closed the door behind me, his eyes not leaving my face. _Was I on the right way, then? _As the door was closed and as darkness fell around us, I thought everything was forgotten and we would go back to normal, but no such thing happened.

Tom then broke the moment and left me by the door, as he walked over to the bed and began undressing without another word. _Well, okay. Not I had expected him to – ah well. Never mind. _I then watched him close the curtains and slip under the sheets, where he turned his back to me, his breathing slow and steady. Shaking my head slightly, yet trying not to be disappointed, I pulled off the hideous green dress and slipped under the sheets on my side of the bed. _At least I'm still allowed to sleep here._

And the night came and went, until the first feeble sunbeams tried to push through the heavy, black curtains. I had spent the entire night lying sleepless on my back, pondering about how I was about to fix what I had broken. And all the time, I felt Tom lie beside me, motionless on his side, breathing slowly, but never deep enough, showing me that he, too, couldn't sleep properly. Silence was hovering above us like a contagious cloud of an ill-fated disease, destroying what was left of the thing I was not yet sure how to name; the thing that had happened between us, in a few days time, all the ups and downs, and how it had been all led by my desire to do something against Tom's near future.

And all this time I had never looked at him properly; at first I had been blinded by the task, and utterly surprised about the things he had made me feel, yet now, lying silently beside him, I knew I should have looked more closely at the being that was Tom Riddle. Not at the many different faces he had showed me, but at the core, the fragile boy inside him.

I should have known that it wouldn't be easy to keep someone off the Dark path if that someone had been on it for his entire life, mostly unknowingly, yet all the time with both of his feet, unable to leave due to his life's course. All those emotions, that he clearly had inside him, all those bad emotions, evil and sad, they were the reason he was so close to be turning into what he became in my time.

It wasn't the person I had to change, but the soul. I had to show him, that there was more to life than bitterness and hatred. That he could continue to give other people his trust, no matter how often he had been disappointed. I had to give him the strength to do so. To not give up even if there was nothing left.

What surely wasn't the easiest part of my task…

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_**A/N:** Drumroll! The next chapter, the second chapter in ONE day! Yes, I still feel very very sorry about the lack of updates in these 4 months... so here we go, another chapter, just for you guys!_

_And now I'm off working on 12.3 or 13? Well, I don't know yet, but that's what I'm sure of: there will be more!_

_Stay tuned and thank you again for reading and reviewing!:)_


	21. You Can't Get Rid Of The Nameless

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Unfinished Business

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**Chapter 13**

And so the morning came, and lying motionless under the sheets, I watched Tom get up, get dressed and finally leave the room without even glancing at me. _Boy, this proved to be difficult…_ I waited a while before I myself got up and dressed, until I then decided to follow him wherever his Head boy business was leading him, which today, as the first day of the Christmas holidays, wasn't too hard to find out.

As I descended the marble staircase into the Entrance Hall, I could already hear students chatting and plates clattering, as breakfast was going on like every other morning, yet there was something in the air, with everyone being eager to get home to their families to celebrate Christmas. _What a weird thought…_ All of those innocent lives who couldn't care less about anything, unaware of what was about to happen, unaware of any trouble at all. And then there were those on a mission. _Like me_. My first Christmas without my family… that I spent alone in a time I didn't belong, with people I'd known for only a couple of days… whose company was still a mystery to me…

A sudden wave of loneliness swept over me as I walked towards the Great Hall, with its enchanted ceiling displaying the snow outside falling thickly, with its huge Christmas tree and decorations all over the place. _With happiness almost making me puke. _I would have enjoyed this time of year if there wasn't something small pressed against the back of my skull; the task I had been laden with. _The task I still had no idea how to fulfill._ I looked around the decorated and warmly lit Great Hall, over the many students eager to finish breakfast in order to get to the Hogwarts Express waiting for them to bring them home.

_Home_. Closing my eyes for a second, I swallowed the lump growing inside my throat, and looked around the Hall again. I could see the teachers' table up front, with Slughorn and Dumbledore being the only ones I recognized, both of them making it not easier to step forwards. My eyes then wandered over the four house tables and rested on the far left, where I could see a group of Slytherins whispering eagerly to each other. Before I could look away again, I felt several pairs of eyes resting on me, and I noticed that Lestrange, Malfoy and Parkinson had spotted me watching them.

Ignoring the twist inside my stomach, I turned away, not only hoping that they would ignore me too, but also wondering where on earth Tom was. _Well, I never expected him to be the social type and have breakfast with everybody else, but still… even he had to eat, didn't he? _I then saw him at the other side of the Hall, sitting with none other than the blond Head girl. He was just handing out sheets of parchment to her and several other students sitting around them. _Ah, the prefects_.

Watching them, I suddenly became aware of my awkward lingering by the door. Biting my lip, I swallowed the idea of feeling extremely out of place and unwanted. I then decided to wait for Tom somewhere else. Somewhere quieter. And so I sat down on the bottom step of the marble staircase, a place where, as I now remembered, I had waited before. Long before as there had been nothing, no memory, no direction, no task. Nothing but Tom who had already led the way to where we were now. A way, I feared, that was leading into nothing but fiasco. _But I would not give up…_

I pulled my knees up and waited. As the first voices came closer, footsteps following, I looked up and saw small groups of students exit, led by several other students who I had seen sitting with Tom and the Head girl. So it was time for the prefects to lead the way towards Hogsmeade Station. _Where would Tom go?_ I looked around eagerly, but couldn't see him emerge from the Great Hall with everybody else. Instead, I found myself staring at a bony face framed by black hair, marked by a large red line.

"Redhead", Lestrange said as he approached the stairs I was sitting on, Malfoy and Parkinson on his tail.

_Asshole. _I simply stared at him, trying not to follow the feeling of hatred and eagerness to respond honestly, at least not out loud.

"Waiting for your lover?", he went on, leaning casually on the banister. "Or is that little story over?"

_You wish!_ I narrowed my eyes and stood up, willing to get away before anything bad could happen. Yet as I wanted to push past the three Slytherins, it was Lestrange who grabbed my arm forcefully and held me back.

He opened his mouth, but I was quicker. "Save your breath, Lestrange! I don't care about your threats!", I hissed and slipped out of his grip, quickly entering the masses exiting the Great Hall.

Feeling quite good about my narrow escape, I then saw Tom standing with the Head Girl in the middle of the Great Hall, watching students and prefects leave through the wooden doors. Yet it was Tom's gaze that made me freeze on the spot. Again I felt out of place, even surrounded by masses of people, I felt as if I was all alone. Tom's icy glance made me feel that way. And suddenly I couldn't stand it anymore. Feeling utterly confused, troubled and most of all hurt, I turned around and ran from the Great Hall, up the marble staircase, past everything and everyone, with no direction in mind.

Yes, I had a task. But so what? Even I was still human, I had a lot of emotions of my own, I couldn't always deal with those of the troubled boy that no one understood. _Well, fat chance._ It was too much! I needed a break… trying to understand Tom Riddle was by far the most complicated thing I had ever done. And what was more troubling, was the rising feeling inside that I was not able to name. Not because I didn't know – hell, no, I knew exactly what was squeezing my insides as I turned my back on Tom and left – no, it was because I was afraid of naming it. Knowing that I couldn't get rid of it once it had a name.

I reached the end of the marble staircase and ran aimlessly along the corridor, before I decided to vanish inside the girl's bathroom and shut out the world that was turning wildly behind my back. As I closed the door, soothing silence greeted me. I walked along the aisle between the cubicles towards the sinks, suddenly realizing which bathroom I had chosen to flee into. _The infamous one._

But I ignored the little snake on one of the faucets and closed my eyes instead, shutting out the worried, freckled face staring at me from inside the dirty mirror. Why did this have to be so complicated? _Because life is complicated… where's the fun if everything's easy? _Fun? Hell yeah, what fun it was to run after Tom Riddle, trying to see through his mood swings… and what fun it was to be infested by not only feelings of defeat but also of confusion…

The task no one in particular had given me was hovering over me like the sword of Damocles. And once again I wondered why I was here. Why did I wake up here when I had died back then? There had to be a reason… I needed guidance, someone to explain all these things to me. But there was no one. My only connection to this time period was Tom Riddle. He had been the only one to see me as I had "arrived" here. And he had been the only reason I was here, as my humble mind had concluded. His diary had been the connection. So just because I once had owned his diary and had had the "honor" to be possessed by it, just because it was me the Death Eaters had chosen to be their victim on their quest to resurrect the Dark Lord, just because I was stupid enough… that was why I was now here, back in the teenage Dark Lord's time?

It was as simple as that, wasn't it?

I opened my eyes and stared into the brown pools behind the dirty glass. Simple. No, there was nothing simple about that. Apart from the reasons why I came back here, it was much more complicated to figure out what I had to do now that I was here. Again, my humble mind, the mind of a sixteen-year-old, had concluded that it might be to change the future's dark course. But was I able to change anything? And as easy as the thought might have seemed inside my head, its realization was something beyond my imagination. _Okay, change someone. Sure, it's as easy as that! Bollocks!_

I couldn't change Tom Riddle. I was aware of that by now. He had to change all by himself. And that was the trick. He wouldn't change unless I somehow found a way to make him see that the road he was on right now was not the right one. _So how was I supposed to do that?_

Yet I had been somehow close to my little goal… yesterday afternoon. It had seemed perfect. We were getting along just fine, he had been about to trust me. We've had… I didn't know what that might be, but there had been something between us. _Of course there had been something between you. Just take a look at what you two had done together!_ I felt my cheeks redden as I heard the voice of reason chime in once more.

_Oh dear._ I didn't even know how to explain how I could have done what I had done. And even though the voice of reason and my own conscience told me that it had been a grave mistake, I couldn't help but to think that it was worth it and that – _Oh come off it! You came back here, you saw and met Tom Riddle and the next moment you did you-knew-what with him! How would you call that, huh?_ I lowered my eyes and stared down into the sink. _Oh dear_.

Now that I looked back at what happened the past days, I suddenly knew that there had definitely been something wrong. Considering the circumstances… how could I have been so stupid? _Well, for your excuse, you were lacking certain memories when it first happened, didn't you?_ Yes! _But the next time you knew exactly what you were doing. And don't get me started on – _Alright, enough! I got your point!

I turned away from the sinks and stared up at the high windows. So either I was yet again influenced by Tom Riddle's manipulation skills or I'm a slut. _Well, to emphasize your last point, you _did_ have your share of boyfriends in the past…_ Hey, you're not helping! _But –_ No! And even if I've had quite a few boyfriends in my young life, I've never been that intimate with anyone before, not after such a short time anyway. He clearly was manipulating me! _If that makes you happier…_ Yes it does!

Tom Riddle was manipulative, there was no doubt about that. But deep within myself, far away from the voice of reason, I knew that it had not been his fault all alone. And suddenly admitting that, after everything that had happened, after old and new memories of him, he clearly was influencing me, I knew what I had known for some time now, back then when I had passed the point of no return: I liked him. _There, it was out._ I liked Tom Riddle even though I knew what he was and what he might become. I couldn't help it. My mind (and basically the voice of reason) was yelling to stop, but my heart would lead me right over the edge into nothingness.

And as for now, I was willing to jump.

_And someone like you should stop the future Dark Lord from rising? Oh my, the world is going down!_

Well, thanks for the confidence!

But maybe I should do exactly that, be the devil's sidekick, his companion, his friend, show him that there was more, more than manipulating, controlling, ruling people, yet not force him to do anything. Make him think. Distract him. And most of all, follow your emotions to do so, not a stupid voice of reason (_Hey!_), not an unbearable task. Follow your heart… and nothing was easier considering the thing manifesting inside.

I suddenly became aware of a slight change around me. Where my eyes had focused on the high windows before, I was now staring into a semi-transparent face. A face that was staring right back at me, lucent eyes wide open. I instinctively jumped back a little.

"What are you staring at?", she whispered, eyeing me closely.

"Myrtle", I simply said, shaking off the shock of her sudden appearance.

"Well, what's so interesting by the windows?"

"Nothing", I replied, turning away from her.

"Then why did you stare at the same spot for such a long time?"

"I was thinking."

Myrtle floated around me with an interested expression. "About what?"

I looked up at her see-through form. "Nothing."

She raised a semi-transparent eyebrow. "You can't think about nothing. That's impossible!"

I shot her a grin and turned towards the sinks. "Oh I can…"

"You're sad", she stated.

"No, I'm confused."

"Still?"

We looked at each other for a while, before I stared into the dirty mirror.

"Nothing changed", I whispered, more to my reflection than to the ghost girl hovering beside me.

"Why does everything always have to change?", Myrtle replied, screeching. I turned my head to her. "I mean… why is everyone so upset about how things are?"

I raised an eyebrow and left her pondering. Back to the problem. _I really don't see why there's still a problem!, _the voice of reason said after a short period of pouting. _You just admitted you like him … despite everything! He also told you in various occasions that what he feels is new to him. Isn't that a change already?_

It didn't feel like a change…

_Well, it is just one tiny step into the right direction. You said you wouldn't give up._ I won't! _Stop bickering then and do something!_

"You're right", I said, louder than intended – making Myrtle stop pondering, as she glared at me with her expression dumbstruck. I ignored her and turned around to leave.

As I stepped onto the corridor, I suddenly had an idea. In order to go back to where everything had been alright (or at least had the right direction), I had to actually take a step back. And so I pushed out the things that had caused the situation to fall apart, and Lestrange, Malfoy and Patty Parkinson were gone from my mind by the time I reached the entrance to the Head common room.

It seemed as if fate (or sheer coincidence or even luck) was on my side, as I saw two figures walk up the marble staircase, heading towards the portrait of the wizard with the pointy hat. Head boy and girl came into view and I jumped into action.

"Hello", I merely said as I joined them at the portrait.

Whereas Tom shot me a semi-surprised, semi-confused gaze, it was the Head girl who reacted in the way I had hoped.

"You? What are you doing here? Didn't I tell you to leave? What –" She spun around to Tom. "What is she still doing here? I told you –"

"No, please, it's my fault", I interrupted her as Tom's expression was changing slightly. "I didn't introduce myself, maybe that's why we had such a bad start."

The blond Head girl gaped at me. Even Tom eyed me suspiciously.

"I'm Tina", I then said, holding my hand out to the girl. "I'm Tom's cousin and he allowed me to stay over the holidays."

Tom frowned, yet didn't say anything. The other girl, on the other hand, continued to stare at me, completely ignoring Tom.

"Cousin?", she asked with narrowed eyes.

_Oh by Merlin, I forgot a little detail… a flaw in my little story. I hope she hadn't seen our little public display of affection… that would be hard to explain…__ but worth a try anyways…_

"Yes, his father's sister married my dad when I was ten. Long and weird story, I don't want to waste your time! Anyway, I'm home-schooled and heard so much about Hogwarts that I begged Tom to allow me to visit him!"

I was amazed by my own story!

_Another lie you need to remember…_

"And… you got that past Dippet?", she asked Tom after a few seconds of thinking it through. I looked at Tom and hoped he would play along.

"Apparently", he then said, with no emotion whatsoever in his voice.

"Well", the Head girl began, turning back to me, looking at my still outstretched hand. "Enjoy your stay, then, Tina", she added and took my hand with a slight smile. "I'm Susan, by the way."

"Nice to meet you", I smiled back.

After that, Susan, the Head girl, nodded at me, then turned to the portrait and told the wizard the password, before she climbed through the gap, leaving me standing on the corridor with Tom.

He looked at me, his expression unreadable once again.

"Tina?", he then asked, an eyebrow raised.

"I finally thought of a back story", I replied with an uncertain smirk. "Don't you like it?"

He considered me for a moment. "It is quite clever…"

I smiled. "I also thought about a way that… well, I thought about how Tom and Tina might continue what they had… before…"

Tom frowned and watched me closely.

"You know, let's forget about what happened, shall we?", I went on, looking at him, feeling a twist inside my stomach as I did so. As he didn't reply, I turned around and counted three steps, until I turned back around, smiling shyly at him.

"Hey, I'm Ginny", I said as I walked back to him. "And I must say, I really like your hair…"

A grin crept over the corners of his mouth. He looked down at me, as I remained standing right in front of him, looking up with what I hoped to be puppy eyes.

"And I must say", he then replied. "I'm glad we're not directly related."

I smiled wider. "Clever of me, eh?"

"Very", he agreed, his eyes wandering over my face, before he grabbed my hand and pulled me through the still open gap behind the wizard's portrait.

I didn't quite remember how we got there, but sometime later, I found myself pressed against the window, my fingers twiddling with the buttons of Tom's shirt, whilst he kissed me with a new born passion I hadn't expected after what happened the last time we had been in his room.

Yet before I was completely swallowed by the growing desire (that infested both Tom and me like a highly contagious disease), my heart (not the voice of reason for a chance) gave a jerk, reminding me of what I had planned to do.

Take a step back.

"Tom", I breathed and tried to turn my head a little to catch my breath as he continued to kiss my jaw line. "Tom… I …"

"Hmm?", was the only sound he made as his lips moved along my skin.

"Tom, I… I know we both suck at talking… but…" My breath came in rapid puffs as his soft kisses reached the hollow of my throat, yet I tried my best. "But… you know… for this to work… I think… we have to…" Take a step back. _Ha ha. Easy to say when there was a handsome boy sucking on your skin… it was like telling a thirsty man to stop drinking when he had finally found the oasis! _"We have to… I mean… we really should…"

"What?", he said after a while of silently listening to my stuttering, his lips still caressing my neck, while his hands ran down my back.

"I want to know more about you", I then said, and for the first time, I heard the voice of reason agree. _Well, even though it's a little late to be honest after you had already shared so much with him, but still, finally, a word of honesty! I'm proud!_

"Sure", was his quick response as he looked up from kissing my neck, his eyes sparkling, a small smile creeping around his lips.

I smiled back at him, and as for the next moments, desire and passion were shutting out everything else. And for the first time, there was nothing inside that held me back from leaning into Tom's warmth. No, there was nothing but the growing, somehow still nameless feeling that pushed me further into his touch. _I liked him_. Oh no. There was more. Yet I was not as naïve as to say that it might have been love. Oh no. There was more between us than love. It was a silent bond, there was no good and evil, there was nothing but a silent bond between us. Something that connected us.

And as I closed my lips around Tom's, with our tongues wrestling, while our hands explored the other's body, I suddenly knew that there was something bigger. Something above us.

Someone who pulled the strings that kept us moving.

And somehow, this someone did not feel like the good guy!

* * *

_**A/N:** Ahem. A new chapter. Finally. Needed longer than intended for this. Sorry ... again!_

_Anyway, here it is, and the plot is back, I hope... I feel a little unfocused, but that'll work out somehow... the confusion I felt when I was writing earlier chapters, is gone now that I read those chapters again. So I hope this confusion will work with the plot again. Yeah, I'm positive... and somehow... rambling... ahem. _

_Soooo... a new chapter ... more about to come... I hope... hehe! Stop the rambling now, damnit! Yes, dearest voice of reason. Keep haunting me... _

_Just a quick THANK YOU for reading and reviewing and I'm off. Thanks and tell me what you think! Keep those reviews coming:)_


	22. Nothing Else Matters

**A/N: Beware of more or less slightly mature content ahead! Ye be warned!**

* * *

Unfinished Business

* * *

**Chapter 14**

I had always found it soothing to watch somebody else sleep.

I remembered times in a former life when I had woken from disturbing dreams (nightmares I now found very foolish) and had fled into the caring embraces of my parents, how they had put me between them in their bed, when I had been so little, so fragile, and lying in their warming midst, I had felt safe, and I had watched them fall back to sleep silently. I had watched my father's nose flutter when loud snores were erupting from his lips, and I had watched my mother's red hair fall into her closed eyes and how she had screwed up her nose to push it away. Their sleep had made me calm. It had been soothing. It had put me back to sleep immediately.

And nightmares, disturbingly frightening or foolishly scary, were gone from my mind.

As I was now lying in the four poster bed, draped in green and silver, I felt disturbingly similar. Yes, it was still disturbing how quickly I had fallen for the boy I was now watching. Yet the more my eyes flew over his motionless form, the less weird it felt. Somehow, a lever had been pulled inside my head, a button had been pushed. Somehow, I didn't mind any longer. Somehow, the only thing that mattered was the black-haired boy lying beside me. I might have felt like this before, whenever I was lying beside him, yet this time… this time it felt different. This time I knew that nothing else mattered.

I was lying on my side, one hand underneath my head, the other loosely beside me. My eyes wandered over the body resting beside me. The black curtains were shut and weak light tried to push through; I didn't know what time of day it was and like anything else, it didn't matter. The boy beside me, as he was lying on his back, breathed soft and slowly, his bare chest rising and falling. His handsome face was a mask of peace, hanks of his black hair had fallen into his forehead, and his eyes were closed lightly. The lips were parted slightly and I could hear his breath escape them in quiet puffs.

But Tom Riddle was not sleeping.

As I continued watching him, I saw a soft smile creep up the corners of his mouth, before one eye was opened slightly, a dark pool surrounded by white replying my gaze. I smiled back at him and sat up slowly, a soft, yet cold breeze running past my naked body as I did so. One of his hands, that had been lying motionless beside his body, was moving towards my stomach as I sat on my knees, my eyes still resting on the handsome face in front of me. His cold fingers met my skin and a chill ran along my spine as he moved his fingertips upwards.

I tilted my head and continued watching him. A thought, small and yet a little childish as I would think in the near future, was popping up inside my head. _Why did he have to be so perfect?_ As my eyes wandered over his jaw, his lips (the lips that had explored my body only seconds ago as it seemed), his nose and finally his now open eyes, I felt another chill ran along my spine as I noticed him watching me. Watching him. I felt something rush through my veins and inside my stomach, where, outside, his hand was still caressing my skin, I could swear something was speeding around as if a million little feet would tickle my insides by running around, jumping, running, back and forth, up and down.

Whatever it was, it felt perfect.

I moved my torso closer to him, still resting comfortably on my knees as I knelt beside Tom's lying form, and propped onto one arm, while the other was moving seemingly on its own, my fingertips eventually running along Tom's abdomen, circling his navel. His hand was now moving upwards, until his fingers were circling my breasts like mine were circling his navel. He slowly sat up, making my hand drop a little as his chest was vertical now, his eyes boring into mine. He then cupped my left breast with a small smile on his lips, while my hand was dropping even more.

As I stared into his dark eyes, it seemed as if my body was moving on its own. The arm, I had been propped onto, was moving up and my fingers found Tom's chest, while the other was still lying, somehow motionless, in his lap. Tom raised his other arm and pulled it around me to gently drag me closer to him. His hand was eventually moving downwards again, and I then found my breasts pressed against his chest, the warmth of his skin mesmerizing me even more. We were still locking eyes, as his hands were pushing my hair off my shoulders for him to caress my neck with his cold fingertips.

His gaze was hypnotic and I somehow ended up sitting on his lap, like those Muggle kids did on Santa Clause's lap. Even though I'd never imagined Santa Clause to have this stunning effect – and such a well formed body. The thought made me giggle slightly and I felt Tom's left hand running over my back as he pressed my shoulder against his chest, while his other hand was drawing lines on my chest. I leant against his warm skin and finally broke the eye contact by closing my eyes, and fell into the soft embrace.

I sank into myself as I was sitting on his lap, my hands loosely in front of me, my shoulder pressed against him. I breathed deep and couldn't help but smile as I filled my nostrils with his scent. Images flashed inside my head as I leant into his touch, and memories, fresh memories from only minutes, maybe hours, ago, danced in front of my eyes. I remembered being breathless and exhausted and at the same time exhilarated and nervous. I still felt Tom's body heavy on mine (even though I was now feeling him beneath me) and could still feel his lips moving over my skin in a nameless passion.

I remembered the soft, but firm pressure of his fingertips on my hips, and the constant beating of my heart, as we had been inseparable. I could remember everything but the insignificant little details of how we had ended up on the bed or how we had managed to get rid of all our clothes or even how much time had passed since we had stumbled into Tom's room. All those things were not important. And I had decided that details didn't matter anymore. I had to focus on larger things in order to go where I wanted to go. Wherever that was.

The goal did not mater. More important was the road leading to it. A road in darkness, yet with a lot of surprises on either side.

I felt Tom wrap his arms around me, before he gently lay me down on my side, my back now pressed tightly against his chest. I kept my eyes closed as my face pointed into the semi-dark room, whilst Tom moved behind me, one hand resting on my hip. The other pushed my hair gently off my shoulder and a second later, I felt his lips on my skin, warm and soothing. His breath tickled my neck and I moved slightly beside him, my own breath growing faster with every second he was pressed against me.

I inhaled deeply as his hand moved over my hip to my abdomen and downwards between my legs. His fingertips were comfortably cold on my skin. I felt his other arm coming to a rest beneath my head and I snuggled against him luxuriously, my eyes opening slightly, before I turned my head a little to look over my shoulder. Tom's pale face came into view as he kissed my neck, until his eyes rested on mine again, his gaze intensely passionate. He stretched his neck a little and his lips found mine in a hungry kiss, while his hand was resting motionless on my inner thigh, its firm pressure making me move closer to him.

I remained with my back turned to him, my heart hammering inside my chest, as I felt Tom's hand opening my legs a little. I bit my lip and closed my eyes, as a weird sensation rushed through me once more, yet it was his kiss, that made me shut out everything else. His kiss was soft and deep, with his tongue playing kindly with mine, and his lips sucking gently. Sucking and pressing, and closing around, and sucking, kissing, wrestling, dancing. A weird, yet soothing melody erupted inside my head and I felt myself moving along its soft chords.

Excitement made my body shake, and Tom's firm grip, his ice cold touch and soothing movements kept me hearing the melody as long as I suddenly found myself lying on my stomach, breathing heavily. I felt Tom lying beside me, one arm resting on my lower back, his breath close to my ear. I turned my head around and saw him facing me, his eyes almost closed, his lips parted, his bare chest heaving. Fatigue washed over me as I slowly rolled onto my side and snuggled against him, my face pressed against his throat, with his Adam's apple bouncing up and down in a drowsy way.

My eyes fell close, and as I opened them again, my head was lying on Tom's chest, his moving ribcage making me move along also. I inhaled deeply and turned my head a little to place a kiss on his skin. The room was still lying in semi-darkness and I had still no idea what time of day it was. For a frightening instance, I suddenly remembered the last time I had had no idea of the time, when I had been wondering where those black periods in my memory had been coming from. _The diary…_ The image was gone as soon as it had come. I inhaled again and closed my eyes.

_No, I am not possessed!_, I told myself and shut the thought out while kissing Tom's chest again. _No, I am doing this voluntarily!_

My hand was lying loosely on Tom's stomach. My eyes wandered over his naked body and found the bed sheets at the foot of the bed. Moving slightly and careful not to disturb him, I stretched my fingers and pulled them closer, before covering both our bodies. A soothing warmth was spreading inside my veins as soon as the fabric was covering my cold body. I pulled the sheets over Tom's bare chest, kissed it again, before I leant back, moved a little up and rested my head next to his head on the pillow.

His face was once again a peaceful mask, pale and still, his eyes closed, his lips parted slightly. I leant in to place my lips on his cheek and suddenly felt his arms coming out of nowhere to pull me into a gentle embrace. I snuggled against him with my nose pressed against his cheek and closed my eyes.

_Yes, we know you two get along fine without any kind of communication, but don't you forget about something?_, I suddenly heard the voice of reason echo somewhere in the back of my head. Not now! _Now is the perfect time to talk!_ Perfect is something else, I thought and placed my hand on Tom's chest, where I could swear to feel his heart beat beneath his soft skin.

"Tom", I then broke the silence, not knowing how my lips had managed to follow the urging voice of reason.

"Hmm?", I heard his response vibrate from his vocal cords.

"I think I finally understand", I began and still didn't know where the words came from. "Why you're so popular with the girls…"

I felt his lips break into a smirk, and as I opened my eyes, he turned his head to me with his eyes sparkling.

"I understand those girls and I understand the other girls… but –"

"Hmm?", he said again, his arm loosely around me.

"I don't quite understand you…"

His eyes wandered over my face, a curious expression lingering over him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean… you're not very… open… not to everyone at least…"

He looked at me with his forehead furrowed. I straightened myself a little and propped my head up on my hand.

"I don't know much about you, Tom. And still … I… I can't… resist, yes, that's the word, resist… you just have to look at me to make me feel… safe… to do… anything. I don't think that's –"

Normal.

_Lord Voldemort is a skilled Legilimens and Occlumens. _

_He can read minds like an open book... _

_'I find I can be very… persuasive!' _

_Do not look into a Basilisk's eyes. It'll kill you!_

The voices rushed through my head like very fast trains coming from different directions and meeting at one spot in the middle of my head, leaving me dizzy and confused. I ignored the sensation and focused on Tom. _Nothing else mattered!_

"Not that that's a bad thing", I went on and felt myself blush, shutting out anything else. "But, well, I want to know more about you than –"

_Your manipulation skills! _

"– your, um, physical side!"

Tom's eyes were wide with amusement. He propped onto one hand and cupped my face with the other, a soft expression playing around his lips. His thumb ran over my cheek in a hypnotic way.

"I always thought you knew… certain things about me", he said quietly. "I didn't feel the need to tell you more."

"I really don't know much, I know a little about your parents, well, father… but –"

"My mother died right after giving birth", he began in a quiet voice while lying back down, his eyes staring up at the ceiling. "I know that she had a brother and that he lived with their father… somewhere…" His voice grew quieter with every word, and I encouraged him to continue by snuggling against him. "I don't know them that well… my grandfather is dead anyway… and my uncle… I saw him once… he told me about my mother and… father…"

He broke off and inhaled sharply. I leant up to kiss his cheek.

"I've lived my entire life in an orphanage in London. I've never had anyone…"

He didn't sound as if he wanted to be pitied, he was just stating the obvious.

"I was very… fortunate to get my letter of acceptance and to go to Hogwarts. I still had to go to the orphanage in the summer, but the other time I felt lucky to be here… at –"

"Home", I breathed against his chin, knowing exactly how he felt by now, knowing that my former home did not exist any longer. The only place there was… was Hogwarts.

"Yes", he replied and I saw him close his eyes. "Home. I've never felt like that before… I felt accepted and good and… life had a meaning…"

He was whispering by now. I moved my hand up to cup his face, while leaning up to gently kiss the corner of his mouth. He looked so fragile as he was lying with his eyes closed on his back, his face pale, his soft voice with the sad edge still echoing inside my head. I kissed him again and felt his arm tighten around me. He opened his eyes, looked at me and simply pulled me closer, both his arms wrapped around me as I rested against him.

"Tell me about your… family", he whispered into my ear after a while of comfortable silence. Family sounded particularly sad the way he said it.

I breathed deep and snuggled against him, my head resting on his shoulder. "I had six brothers", I began, and it wasn't hard to remember my former life and my beloved family. "I was the youngest and the only girl."

Tom's hand gently stroke my arm as I went on talking.

"My family wasn't very rich. We lived in a really small house, with a garden and –" I closed my eyes. "We didn't have much, but we've always had… us…"

Through my closed eyes, I felt tears spread from underneath my lashes. I swallowed and opened my eyes widely to stop any more tears from spilling. But it was too late. Silent sobs erupted from my throat and made me hiccough slightly. All those happy memories of a former life… it had been too much. The realization that all those things, that my entire family, my brothers and my mother and my father, were gone forever, hit me like an oncoming train. I fought against the tears but it wouldn't do.

I watched helplessly how they ran over my cheeks and dropped onto Tom's chest. I tried to wipe them away, as my hand froze in mid-motion. Tom had sat up and was holding me tightly, one of his hands running gently over my back, trying to calm me, the other was holding my face, as he looked at me out of sad, dark eyes. I blinked rapidly, my lips trembling as I replied his gaze. He leant in and kissed me tenderly, his touch soothing.

The thought (_I'm all alone_), that had rushed through my head only seconds ago, was vanishing as if being pushed away. I looked at Tom and felt my heart beat faster again.

"I'm with you", was all he said, before he gently pressed my face against his neck. My arms wrapped around him in a desperate way and I felt myself calm down shortly there after. And even though I felt slightly embarrassed about my sudden weakness, I couldn't help but feel safe in Tom's arms. And he didn't seem to mind either.

I recovered quickly and thanked Tom for the tight embrace by kissing him gratefully. He replied the gesture by holding my face with both hands, while our lips met in a new awoken passion. _Why did this feel so good?_, I thought while running my fingers through his hair.

_Because you shouldn't do this_, was the sudden response from deep within.

But why?

_It's not right! _

So what? I've done the right thing for my entire life. And look where it got me!

Tom's tongue was pressing lightly against mine as I focused on my whereabouts again. I leant into the kiss and felt good about it. _Nothing else mattered._

Not the task pounding in the back of my head, not the voice of reason pouting somewhere else, and not the force that would come alive once I stepped past the boundary that was Tom Riddle's fading ambition to become the future Dark Lord.

No, nothing else mattered.

* * *

_**A/N:** Aaaand a new chapter, 24 hours after the last one. I'm good. But do not count on that... I might be attacked by a mean writer's block any second... ahem, no, I hope not. I still have loads of ideas to write down... so, we'll see. Stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed!_

_Not much to say here... I am still (and will always be) grateful about all of you guys reading, liking and reviewing this story! Thank you sooo much! You keep me writing!:)_


	23. This Is Bound To Go Wrong

* * *

**Unfinished Business**

* * *

**Chapter 15.1**

It must have been around dawn as I got up from Tom's bed and walked over to the black curtains. The world outside was nothing but a black curtain itself; nothing, not even the untouched white snow on the mountains, could be seen, just thick black nothingness, that would only vanish when the sun would rise… far, far away. And yet I was not afraid as I stood in the dark, looking outside. The darkness was only scary if there was no one around. But somebody was around, and said someone was lying on the bed, only half covered by the sheets, breathing softly.

I turned around, and as my eyes got used to the dark, I could see Tom's pale face shine in the dimness. His eyes were closed, yet his lips began to move as I continued watching him.

"Are you up already?", he asked, his voice soft and quiet.

"Yes."

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing", I replied, equally quiet. "I'm just looking out of the window."

"But it's still dark."

"I know", I said and smiled into the night. "I like it when it's dark and quiet and peaceful, when the day awakes without anyone noticing…"

I turned back to the window and inhaled the cold air. Behind me, I could hear the sheets being pulled aside, before I could hear Tom's bare feet on the floor, moving towards the window. I then felt his arms being pulled around my waist, and his head suddenly appeared on my shoulder, as he leant against me. I turned my head a little and smiled at him, my hands closing around his arms.

"It is nice", he then said and followed my gaze into the night.

"I can't believe we spent the entire day in bed", I muttered after a while, a smirk creeping up my features.

"I can't believe we didn't eat…", Tom replied, frowning slightly.

I giggled. "I guess we have to make up for that…"

"I'm kind of starving…"

"Me too."

"Well?", Tom asked, his lips brushing over my ear.

"Let's eat", I suggested with finality.

"Everyone's asleep."

"But not the house elves…"

"In the kitchens?"

"Have you ever been to the kitchens?", I asked, turning my head to look at him.

"No."

"No? Well, then you have to go there!", I declared and leant up to kiss his cheek.

"Right… now?"

"Yes, right now, come on, get dressed!"

I was about to pull away from his embrace, but he was holding me tightly.

"Actually… I don't think I'm that hungry after all", he said and a grin played around the corners of his mouth.

I watched him closely. Raising an eyebrow, I agreed. "You're right. It _is _still dark…"

"Come on", he then said and guided me back to the bed.

And it was no sleeping that made the hours go by.

* * *

As breakfast was almost over in the Great Hall, I found myself in the little bathroom next to Tom's bedroom, taking a long, hot shower. Soon after, I was dressed again and ready. I walked back into Tom's room and found him sitting on the chair by the window, his head lowered slightly as he was scanning a piece of parchment that was lying on his desk. He was already dressed, even though his sweater and robes were still lying neatly over the back of the chair. 

He looked up as I closed the door and walked slowly past him towards the windows. The world was awake again, the mountains' top white with snow, the lake a sparkling landscape of ice. There was even a pale blue sky this morning. I met Tom's gaze with a smile as he stood up and quickly kissed me on the cheek. I immediately noticed the lack of tie and the three loose buttons of his Oxford shirt. _He was learning._

"Ready?"

"Almost", I said and looked around the room, knowing that I wouldn't find anything. "Just… let me go through our little story again…"

"Again?", he asked, and leant against the back of the chair, as I sat down on the foot of the bed.

"Yes. So. I am Tina, your cousin, your father's sister's husband's daughter."

Tom watched me semi-amused.

"Not related, if anyone saw us making out or something. Just… related by marriage. And no, it does not matter that your father might not have had a sister. No one knows, right? Yes. Yes, I think that might work."

"It might", Tom agreed with a smile.

"And there aren't so many people here anyway. Over the holidays? Even most of the staff is going home over Christmas. Right?"

"Yes, there are maybe twenty people here, some teachers, the headmaster, the caretaker, the nurse, the – no, the librarian went home yesterday. But yes, there are only a few people here. Don't worry", he said, emphasizing his last words by getting up and sitting down next to me.

I turned my head to him and smiled shyly. "And", I began after a while. "What about… us?"

"You mean… not Tina and Tom, but Ginny?"

"Yes, Ginny and Tom. What about them?"

"They are fine. They are just fine…", he said and pulled an arm around me.

"Only fine?"

"No, not only fine. More than fine. You know, Ginny is someone… special. And Tom is trying to adjust."

"He's doing great, by the way", I grinned and leant against him.

He kissed my forehead and together we got up and walked towards the door.

The Head common room was quiet, deserted and slightly cold. Pale sunbeams broke through the high windows. My hand in Tom's, I walked with him past the couches and armchairs. As we reached the notice board, Tom let go of my hand and took a step sideways to take off a sheet of parchment. I followed him and looked around him to take a look at the parchment. It was a list of students spending Christmas at Hogwarts. A couple of Ravenclaws, some Hufflepuffs, a few Gryffindors and – two Slytherins whose names I wished to not have spotted on the yellowish piece of parchment.

"Tom", I then asked quietly, as he scanned the list, before his eyes wandered over the notice board.

"Hmm?", he replied, apparently deep in thought.

"Why… um, are you friends with… those guys?", I asked, my voice unstable, my mind running off another way as I began to speak.

"Who?"

"Lestrange and Malfoy", I replied, nodding towards the list.

Tom followed my gaze and met mine soon after. "Why I'm friends with them?"

"Yes."

"Well, everyone needs someone who -" _Has the same interests?_ "- doesn't ignore the other one. It's not really a friendship. We get along fine. Well, most of the time, anyways. I wouldn't say I'm grateful to be friends with them, no, I'm just –"

"Everyone needs minions?" I almost choked as the words came out my mouth. _Where did those words come from?_

Tom looked at me equally surprised.

"Well", I began to defend myself. "You, um, you said so on the first night, day, that we've met, back in your room, remember? You told me everyone fancies someone with responsibility."

"I did, didn't I?", he said, as if trying to remember.

I simply watched him.

And he watched me right back.

"You're using them", I said quietly.

"Just like they are using me", he replied, reminding me of our first conversation considering the topic.

_Yes, they were using him. And that was not a good thing!_

"As long as all of you are happy with that", I then said with a smirk, trying to loosen the situation.

He tilted his head and shrugged. "It won't hurt, would it?"

I looked up at him, my eyes immediately wandering towards the little red scratch that was still visible just beneath his hairline. He frowned as he noticed where I was looking.

"Lestrange did that, didn't he?", I whispered, moving closer to him as I examined his forehead.

Tom merely looked at me.

"And you are responsible for the scratch on his cheek, aren't you?"

Still no reaction.

"Why did you do that if you're friends?"

"He's not my friend. He wants to be, though", Tom then said, one of his hands moving up to cup my face. "But he has nothing", he added, barely audible.

I opened my mouth to question his last comment, but remained silent as Tom's thumb gently stroke my cheek. _Lestrange had nothing_. Nothing of what? No potential in becoming Dark? A thought crept into my brain as I stared up into Tom's dark eyes. He was underestimating Lestrange. He didn't know what that bony faced boy could be capable of. He didn't know that Lestrange was working against him. I remembered him saying to his Slytherin fellows never to underestimate the enemy. Lestrange was not an enemy for Tom, he was just an unimportant, annoying rebel, a minion willing to stand up from time to time, he had nothing. _Oh Tom, this is bound to go wrong!_

Yet I kept my thoughts to myself and smiled up at him. He leant forwards and kissed me quickly. He then grabbed my hand and lead me away from the notice board.

"Now, let's take a look at the infamous kitchens, shall we?", he said as if we never had another conversation. I nodded and squeezed his hand slightly. Yes, let's not worry about future trouble.

There would be enough trouble at the end anyways.

The end, however, was still kept in a very dark and distant future, chained to a massive wall, held hidden in a dusty corner, a gloomy, dirty place I wouldn't want to think about. There was no end. There had been a beginning and now there was something of a middle piece. Hmm. What exactly was it that lay between end and beginning? Again I was lacking a name for what I felt and experienced these days. But lack of a name didn't make the thing itself go away…

After a stomach filling breakfast with Tom (who was extraordinarily surprised about the house elves and the way they had obeyed to every wish that had come over our lips), I found myself walking along the cold corridors of Hogwarts, my eyes scanning the snow laden windowsills and the whiteness beyond the windows. My arm was wrapped around Tom and his lay playfully around my shoulder, my free hand playing with his long fingers as we walked our way.

Even though it must have been way beyond minus twenty degrees in the halls, I didn't feel entirely cold. I couldn't remember ever having felt that warm in these cold months of winter. Nor could I remember to have let down my guard so easily, ever, in my life. The voice of reason, the only voice that was still questioning (even though extremely quiet and muffled somewhere in the back of my mind) the current situation, reminded me quite often (even though in vain) that I shouldn't feel that secure when I was with Tom.

But I couldn't help it. I did. I felt secure, very much secure, around Tom.

There were other things around that gave me the creeps. And that were the things that mattered. Tom was on my side. Now it was about time to get everything (and everyone) out of the way of ruining it.

Too bad I didn't have that much influence on the way the universe was working.

"Tom!", a call echoed through the hallway, making me wince as I literally jumped out of my thoughts.

We both turned around to the source of disturbance, just in time to see a blonde girl hurrying towards us. Tom dropped his arm (as did I, even though involuntarily) and tilted his head at Susan, who soon after came to a halt in front of us.

"What's the matter?"

"Dippet is looking for us, for you, to be certain", the Head girl declared.

"Why?"

"How should I know? I just got the note telling me that Dippet wants to see us, you especially."

Tom exchanged a glance with me and I knew what he was thinking. I had a bad feeling inside my stomach as well. Had the Head girl asked the Headmaster if Tom's story about his cousin visiting him was true and now our little story was about to crumble? Or was it something else and I had a bad feeling for nothing? Tom just nodded.

"Alright, I'll be there in a minute", he told Susan, about to turn towards me again.

"No, Tom! He wants to see us now, it's urgent!"

"What could be that urgent, eh?"

"I don't know, okay?" She sounded really agitated by now.

"Never mind", he then said and sighed. "I'll be back as soon as possible, alright?", he told me by pulling me into a light embrace, keeping up the masquerade.

I nodded and then watched the two of them hurry along the corridor. As they were out of sight, I turned around and continued walking, my eyes still on the snow outside whilst my mind was racing as to why the Headmaster wanted to see Head boy and girl and why it was so urgent. I couldn't understand what tasks they might have during the Christmas holidays when there was literally nothing to do. But what did I know? I've never been a prefect and I haven't lived long enough to maybe become Head girl. _What did I know…_

A sigh escaped my lips just as I suddenly felt a hand coming from behind.

The tiny and somehow pathetic thought that Tom might be back already was soon kicked away by the realization that this was not a gentle embrace. A split second later, I was pressed against the nearest wall, held by brutally strong hands, kept silent by two piercing eyes, as I was facing my opponent.

"Hello Redhead", echoed the cold voice of Lestrange through my head as he stared into my eyes. "With your boyfriend being busy for a while, I think we have a little time to enjoy ourselves, huh?"

I just gaped at him. In my mind I had expressed my anger by shouting "What do you want?" at him, but in reality, all that had come out were muffled sounds not even I had understood as he had pressed his hand not very gentle on my lips to keep me silent. I couldn't even realize the situation as he grabbed my arm violently and pushed me forwards along the deserted corridor. I was literally dumbstruck. It was the voice of reason who made my mind work again. _DO SOMETHING!_

I tried to inhale the cold winter air through Lestrange's bony fingers, trying to find the energy to break free from the numbness and his brutal grip, as I suddenly realized where he was taking me.

The snow was blindingly bright – and terribly cold. I continued struggling, as Lestrange pushed me through the Oak front doors into the icy forenoon. My feet sank into the fresh snow as I clumsily stumbled forwards. I wanted to express my confusion and disdain, but Lestrange's hand remained firmly on my mouth. I decided to concentrate more on getting free and trying to kick him as often as I could, instead of watching where I was going – until it was too late and I felt myself being pushed into a shadowy corner between dead bushes and the solid walls of the castle, far away from civilization.

As my bare hands met the ice cold snow, my entire body went numb. I tried to get up again, cherishing the short moment Lestrange had let go of me, as I felt something pointy being pressed against my cheek. My eyes flew up, facing Lestrange's wand awfully close to my right eye. I swallowed and stared up at him, completely frozen in mid-motion. He stared right back, his eyes slits in his bony white face.

"What do you want from me?", I managed to whisper, my voice shaking from cold. And maybe something else.

"You'll find out eventually", was all he said, as his hand shot forwards again and grabbed my upper arm brutally.

He pulled me into a standing position, his wand still pressed against my cheek.

"And from now on you better stay silent!"

* * *

_**A/N: **I think you wouldn't believe me if I told you that I had been attacked by the meanest of all creatures, I was ambushed, kidnapped, tortured and whatnot by the terrifying... writer's block!! Oh it was horrible! I wanted to write because I had so much time on my hands and it all seemed perfect for more chapters... but then it got me. Kept me from writing more... I AM SO SORRY BUT IT WAS NOT MY FAULT! Blame the damn writer's block!_

_Sigh. BUT I somehow conquered it, thanks to you! I tried to break free and finally got a hang on things... at least a little update, one chapter, the next is still a work in progress but anyways. I'm back. And I just throw in a bunch of thank yous, I am grateful that there are still so many people reading this! THANK YOU EVERYONE! Keep those reviews coming!_

_And BIANCA!! You are back, I missed you!! I'm sorry to hear that you had to move and that you actually spent the last few months without computer! God, how did you survive that? I am really glad you're back! And I hope, with you being back, I'm able to write more and satisfy everyone... hugs and kisses right back at you!_

_There's also something I wanted to say before you have to wait for the next update; I came across a couple of reviews telling me that I'm using speech marks (or whatever the name is) in the wrong way. Let me explain that: I am German (yes, that's the best excuse for everything concerning langauge issues... xD). The way I use the " " and the commas and whatnot is the way we do it in German. I am sorry I always made that mistake, I just wasn't aware of that (my teachers NEVER told me it was wrong! Stupid German English teachers that is!). But, now that I am, it's kind of hard to edit EVERYTHING and correct that. So, I'll use my way of doing direct speech and I am sorry if you'll stumble across that. Nobody's perfect, I guess you have to live with the way I put letters and words and whatnot together. So, if you find more mistakes, you can keep them. I'm that generous xD_

_Anyway, I am not angry or whatever about such comments, I actually DO like criticism, keep it coming! I'm here to learn from my mistakes (even though I can't correct every one). So, tell me what's wrong and I try to fix it._

_So long, thanks for reading, thanks for future reviews and please be patient and stay tuned._


	24. I Won't Let You Scare Me

* * *

**Unfinished Business **

* * *

"_And from now on you better stay silent!"_

**Chapter 15.2**

There was something in his voice that made me realize that he was not kidding. Actually I had never seen him that serious. He wasn't even grinning his usual grin. Seeing his stern gray-blue eyes, I would have preferred the evil grin.

"And now go", Lestrange then said and nodded towards a small black gap in the walls that I had thought solid. "Go!"

And without any more information he pushed me forwards, until I stumbled head first into the gap – that proved to be the entrance to a place even I (being the sister of the Hogwarts pranksters) had never heard of before. I fell hard onto the cold stone floor, before I noticed Lestrange's feet land almost inaudible beside me. I tried to sit up and looked around at where I had come from. The gap was gone. Before I could look around a little more, I felt his hand grab the back of my robes, pulling me on my feet again.

"Where are we?", I asked, simply forgetting about his threat, which earned me a resounding slap in the face. Closing my eyes to drive away the pain building up in my head, I inhaled deeply, deciding to remain silent – even though I was burning to know what this was all about.

"Will you be quiet now?", he hissed and I felt his fingers close around my neck from behind.

I tried to nod, my cheek burning from the impact with his palm.

"Will you obey?"

I shouldn't have hesitated as he pulled me backwards violently, his fingers gripping my neck, the pain rushing from my cheek into my throat. His face was suddenly very close to mine so that I could see the tiny red veins surrounding his eyeball.

"Will you obey?", he hissed again, his lips almost brushing over my ear.

I held my breath and nodded slightly.

_Did I have a choice?_

"Come on now", Lestrange hissed and pushed me away from him so that I almost landed on my hands if he hadn't grabbed the back of my robes again, dragging me forwards like a piece of meat.

What was going on? _And why don't you fight him? _Because he was the one with the wand, remember? _Speaking of which, any idea where your wand might be?_ My wand? I never thought about that… my wand… I guess it's lost in time and space or something… _But you got here just fine, even with your uniform and everything. Hey, even your memory got back to you. Why shouldn't your wand? _Well, I don't have it with me, so why think about it, huh? _Yeah, don't fight and play the damsel in distress. Just your perfect role, isn't it?_

While being dragged along a narrow, dark and dirty corridor somewhere beneath the castle of Hogwarts, I froze in mid-motion (not that it would have been noticed as I was not walking on my own). It didn't matter what Lestrange wanted from me, it only mattered that I did something against it. Whatever that might be. And however I might do that without a wand…

I didn't think. My mind was numb, the voice of reason silenced by tension. I didn't think. I just raised my arm and lashed about. My knuckles met a bony cheek, before my fingernails scratched along another piece of skin. I raised my other arm and did the same. Lestrange seemed too perplexed to do anything against my sudden outburst that he loosened his grip on my robes. I used his confusion and rolled away from him, quickly pressing myself against the nearest wall, my fists raised, tapping on the balls of my feet.

As he noticed me standing a little away from him, he raised his wand – my signal to jump at him. My mind was still numb and every nerve was concentrated on fighting the bony faced boy. I pushed him against the opposite wall, my hands wrestling with his, as I tried to make him let go of his wand. His face was angrily distorted, the scratch on his cheek burning red in the paleness of his skin. _I won't let you scare me! I won't let you scare me! _I repeated the only thought visible in my mind over and over, as I continued wrestling with him.

I eventually sank my nails sharp into his wrist whereupon he let out a roar of pain and dropped his wand. Just as he wanted to dive for it, I raised my knee to kick him, making him tumble for a second. Yet he recovered quickly and forgot about his wand immediately, as he launched at me, his hands grabbing my throat as I tried to avoid his grip. I let out a gasp and cramped my fingers around his, suddenly feeling the first flash of fear.

All alone in a corridor I've never seen before, with a guy that was clearly capable of doing whatnot with me. Yes, now was the time to feel scared!

_NO!_, roared the voice of reason.

No, being scared wouldn't help me now!

_YES!_

Struggling in his grip, feeling how he squeezed the last bit of air out of my throat, I tried to concentrate my remaining strength on my legs. Soon after my foot had hit his left knee, then the other, and suddenly I felt his grip loosen as he tumbled against the nearest wall. I grabbed one of his hands and sank my teeth into his skin. Another roar of pain echoed through the hallway, making me duck as he launched at me again. I dove from him, almost tripping over a small piece of wood, lying on the dirty floor.

Relief ran through me, as I picked up his wand, turned around in the same movement and pointed it directly at his face, watching how he immediately froze in mid-motion. His rigor only lasted a couple of seconds, before he simply ignored the wand in my hand and attacked again. Even though I was shaking from fear and lack of air, I clutched the wand tighter and remained where I was, screaming:

"Stupor!"

He was already at me as the spell hit him. I tried to back away but too late; his stupefied body knocked me over and made me fall hard on the stone floor, sending daggers of light through my head. As I recovered from shock and impact, I heaved Lestrange off me and rolled him against the nearest wall, the wand in my hand shaking badly. Panting, I decided to sit down on the dirty floor, inhaling the cold and musty air hungrily.

It was then that I looked around. The hallway Lestrange had led me looked still as unfamiliar as before; it reminded me only of the dungeons, but even that place seemed far more spacious. Another secret chamber? I really hoped not…

After another minute or two I got to my feet again, my eyes fixed on Lestrange's motionless form. As he didn't seem to move (which he couldn't due to the hex, but you never knew; bad guys always seem to have super powers when it came to defense spells), I looked away from him towards the end of the corridor. Darkness greeted me. I looked the other way and again, there was nothing but blackness at the end of it.

I shot a last glance at Lestrange (who was still quite immobile), before I pocketed his wand and turned around towards the end of the corridor, the way Lestrange had wanted to drag me. Whatever lay beyond the darkness, I was about to find out as I began walking along the hallway.

I walked for quite a while – and realized to my growing concern that there seemed to be no end to the corridor. _Where was I?_ Did I miss a door or a curve or a staircase? No, there wasn't anything. Just solid walls on both sides, no windows, no portraits, no tapestries, just walls. Musty, dirty, dark. The only light source were little round glass flasks hanging from the ceiling; and it sounded as if countless fireflies were crammed together inside, not a nice sound as I was walking alone along the corridor.

After another while I decided to go back as there was still nothing new around. Turning around, I met the same view and was temporarily confused. Shaking my head, I simply walked back the way I had come, wondering how far I had gone as I didn't even see Lestrange's motionless form on the floor. Feeling my heart pumping harder against my ribcage, I tried to push the rising fear away from my mind. What was easier said than done.

The darkness seemed to become more intense with every step I took. As I kept hearing noises around me, my head wouldn't stand still. I then remembered the wand inside my pocket and almost clumsily dove my hand inside my robes. My fingers got hold of the little piece of wood and immediately made me feel a little more secure.

"Lumos", I whispered and praised the sudden brightness erupting from the tip of the wand.

But Lestrange's immobile form remained lost.

I clutched the wand and scanned walls, floor and ceiling. _Where the hell was he? Did I really go that far? Where –_

A sudden movement made me spin around. _Was there a shadow?_

I looked around and around again. But there was nothing. There had been nothing. _By Merlin, I'm driving myself crazy here!_ I let out a sigh (or a mixture of a roar and a cry for help) and lowered the wand, looking up and down the corridor. _What should I do? _Keep walking?

Might work.

And so I did. Gripping the wand tightly with my knuckles turning white, staring straight forwards as I continued walking along the hallway, hoping to get to the spot where I either had left Lestrange's stupefied body or where I might find a way out.

The way out would be best.

I kept walking. And walking. And walking. And the corridor didn't seem to end. I stopped several times, trying any spell that came to my racing mind on walls, floor or ceiling, but nothing changed. There didn't seem to be a way out. I walked on.

Moments, that seemed like hours, later, I gave up. There was no end. And my legs began to hurt. As did my cheek where Lestrange had slapped me. My nerves didn't even seem to exist anymore. I walked slower, until my feet quit and I was standing in the middle of the never-ending hallway, panting as if I had been running. The wand hang loosely in my hand that also hang loosely by my side. And I had thought handling mood-swing-Tom was hard, or fighting his enemy-friends. But no, this stupid corridor made me crumble. Stupid…

Sighing, I leant against the nearest wall, trying to figure out what to do next (even though my mind had quit a long time ago, knowing that there wouldn't be a solution). I half expected the wall to move, do anything, but no, those times were over. I was as solid as the wall and vice versa. Pity. And as I was absorbed into my empty mind, thinking hard without creating a single thought, I almost missed the noise to my right. Coming the way I had come from. I shook my head to concentrate on the disturbance and stared into the darkness.

Was that –

Yes, footsteps!

Coming closer. Oh dear. Even though that meant I wasn't alone anymore, it felt relieving and frightening at the same time. Who could it be that came towards me? Good or bad? _So what? You have the wand, remember?_ Right. Before I could think about putting out the light, I saw a figure coming closer; a shadow in the darkness of the corridor. With my heart hammering against my ribcage, I raised the wand and pointed the light at the approaching movement.

The longer I stared (and seconds seemed to last forever as I did so), the more scared I became. I imagined meeting Tom in this corridor, Tom, the knight in shining armor. Or maybe it was Lestrange or Malfoy, trying to do whatnot. But staring into the darkness I created monsters that destroyed any hope left. Bodiless monsters ready to attack whenever I let down my guard. _I wouldn't_. But the more I stared, with the footsteps coming closer, the wilder my heart was beating inside my chest and the crazier my mind went. I caught myself staring without blinking at the approaching figure, my mouth slightly open, the wand in my hand shaking badly.

As the cone of light hit the shadow, I knew it. I had imagined the worst… and the worst had come. My mind shut down, fear taking over my body, numbing every nerve. My heart seemed to freeze inside my chest. The worst was close.

While I was stupefied by my own fear, my eyes wide, my breath stuck inside my throat, I watched the figure getting to a hold. Tall, hidden beneath a long black cloak, its hood pulled deep in the anonymous face. Then long, thin hands with skin as white as paper were raised to push off the hood. My mind was only working in slow motion as I witnessed how the worst materialized. A long face came into view, distorted not only by the light bouncing off the musty walls. Unnaturally pale skin over a long skull, an overall snakelike appearance.

But I was not held hostage by the slits for nostrils or the thin lips or the lack of hair, it were the bright red eyes, the catlike eyes, beaming in the darkness, staring down at me. Staring at me as they had done before.

Before I could realize who I was staring at, I heard two words bouncing inside my head. My wand-hand was trembling, my eyes even wider, my heart now leaping against my ribcage. _This is not happening…_, I heard a very distant voice somewhere in the back of my head, but I didn't listen to its words. I was stupefied. Dumbstruck. Horrified. Two other words were echoing through my head like a mantra. Words I had heard before. Right before the end.

The end.

No!

This was not the end, this could not be the end! _THIS IS NOT HAPPENING!_

I took a deep breath that felt as if I had been airless for quite a while. Filling my lungs, I clutched the wand in my hand and pointed it at the figure in front of me. _I won't let you scare me… no… I…_ But red eyes were boring into mine, burning an image to the back of my skull. _No, I couldn't defeat the worst. I was too weak. I –_

I took another deep breath and somehow managed to move a muscle. Backing up I felt the wall being awfully close, with the shadow of the worst getting closer. Red eyes, white skin… red eyes… two fires burning into my skin as they continued to look at me. And the words. Two words resounding in my ears. Over and over. No. NO! THIS IS NOT HAPPENING AGAIN!

I straightened my posture and raised my wand a little more. My mouth felt awfully dry; speaking did not seem to be an option. And I never really learned how to do non-verbal magic. I died before finishing my sixth year at Hogwarts. I died. _But I am here. I breathe. _Yet I was killed by the worst.

The worst that had materialized in front of me. The worst I had conjured out of thin air. _Fear breeds monsters_ (this is not happening), _fear drives you insane_. Fear was gripping every muscle and yet I tried my best to stand up against the figure that had not moved an inch in those seconds that had seemed like hours. Suddenly the two words I kept hearing inside my head were growing louder. Echoing off the dirty walls. Literally knocking me over.

"Avada Kedavra!"

The light at the tip of the wand I was holding in my hand distinguished. Darkness fell. And so did I. The wall seemed to back away as I slid to the floor. My head hit the cold stone and sent flashes of lightning through my senses. I heard something clattering on the floor away from me, feeling oddly relieved as I felt that my hands were empty. Then there was silence.

Besides the beating of my heart and the rushing of my blood that was to say.

I inhaled sharply, feeling my head pounding violently.

What happened?

_You panicked. And imagined standing face to face to Lord Voldemort._

Oh dear.

And – 

There's an and?

_And you imagined being killed. Again._

And now I was somehow lying on the dirty floor of this stupid corridor, in the dark, talking to the only voice around. My own.

Trying to sit up, I felt as if my head was about to explode. Propping on one arm, I then looked around. The same hallway, as I had expected. As I had feared. My sigh echoed off the dark walls. Before fear could grab me once more, I decided to get up again, doing the only thing there was. Walking on. But as soon as I got to my feet, trying to decided which way to go, I heard footsteps again.

My blood froze inside my veins, my heart missed a beat, and before my mind could tell me lies again, I saw a figure erupting from the shadows, limping a little, coming closer with finality. My eyes widened and as a bony, pale hand was being raised, I couldn't help but scream. The sound reverberated in the corridor, making me wince even more as the hand grabbed the front of my robes.

"Shut up, damn it!!"

I shrieked again as I recognized Lestrange standing in front of me, his messy black hair framing his bony face.

"What's wrong with you?", he went on, letting go of my robes, staring at me angrily.

"What's wrong with _me_?", I repeated, my voice still a notch too high. "What's wrong with _you_? Taking me into this stupid hallway! There's no end to it! I checked. There's nothing! What were you thinking to kidnap me like that, huh?" My fear was soon gone and replaced by a growing anger. I emphasized every word by hitting his chest with my clenched fist. "And why the hell are you here? I Stunned you! You can't walk around like this! I Stunned you!"

"Stop it, woman!", he hissed and shoved my fist away from him. "You Stunned me, oh yes. But the hex was lifted only a couple of minutes ago. I guess you fainted or something. Well, lucky for me."

"Lucky for – _argh_!" I let out a roar and continued punching him until my fists were hurting. He stopped me by grabbing my wrists, staring at me out of narrowed eyes.

"Get a grip on yourself, will you?", he hissed, clutching my wrists tightly.

"I will not do such things! First you explain yourself!", I hissed back, anger boiling inside me.

"Why should I?"

"Why? Because if I get out of here, I'll tell Tom what you did and –"

"Aw, you'll run to dear Riddle? Squealer!"

I narrowed my eyes.

"And by the way, how do you want to get out of here?"

"I'll kick you until you get me out of here!"

"Fat chance, red head!"

"Trust me, you don't want to spend that much time with me. You have to get me out of here sometime."

"I don't. I can just leave and let you rot here!"

"You wouldn't dare!"

Lestrange raised an eyebrow. "Want to bet?"

I pressed my lips together and stared at him, feeling my hands going numb by the pressure of his grip. "You don't want be enemies with Tom", I then said.

"Really? What makes you say that?"

"You have no idea what he's like. What he's capable of." _Yes, you have no idea what he might become…_

"Come off it. He's nothing!"

_He's nothing._ Same words, different guy. So they clearly underestimated each other. Was there still a threat if both of them thought nothing of the other?

"And if you go running to dear Riddle, I'll go to Dippet and tell him about the mysterious new student."

"What?" That caught me quite off guard.

"I did a little research, redhead. You are not enrolled in Hogwarts. There's no one named Ginny. Or Tina."

"What? How did you –"

"Susan told me. Yes, redhead, I'm not only friends with the Head boy, but also with the Head girl. She told me about your little story. She believed you, but I don't. Riddle doesn't have cousins. His father didn't even have a sister. His father, the stupid Muggle! Do you really think I let myself being commanded by someone with a Muggle father?"

I stared at Lestrange with my eyes wide. He knew.

He knew everything.

* * *

_**A/N: **And another update. Yes, at this pace I like to work. Ideas are coming, hopefully they'll stay a little longer. Yes, I'm back._

_And again I thank each and every one of you for reading, reviewing, faving, alerting, whatnot this story. THANK YOU! Your support means everything to me!_

_So, no Tom this time, not directly at least. A little more plot, a little more drama. I loved writing Ginny's little nervous breakdown. I love writing psycho-stuff xD So, Lestrange knows everything. What happens next?_

_Stay tuned and thanks for your attention!_


	25. Never Misjudge Your Enemy

* * *

**Unfinished Business**

* * *

_A/N: May contain mild violence and other slightly mature themes. Be warned!_

**Chapter 16**

Lestrange knew everything.

What did that mean for the end of the story? What did it mean for me and the current situation? As for another question: why the hell did he know everything?

Well, that was easy: he might underestimate Tom as his enemy but he nevertheless tried to gather as much information about him as possible. Something Tom was definitely lacking in his arrogance of thinking nothing of Lestrange.

I knew this was bound to go wrong…

Staring into my opponent's eyes, I tried to figure out how to get a) away from him, b) out of this hallway and c) to Tom so that I could warn him. Too many things for one person to figure out. A headache was approaching.

_Let's begin with where we stand, shall we?_

Corridor. Endless. Whether I wanted to admit it or not, I needed Lestrange to get me out of here. So –

"So?"

I gaped at him as he unknowingly (I hoped) questioned my train of thought. "Huh?"

"Who are you and what do you want?", he asked with impatience, while his hands were still holding my wrists. Tightly.

"Could you let go first? I won't run away, I promise", I replied with a nod towards one end of the endless corridor.

"And let you attack me again? I don't think so!"

I narrowed my eyes. "But I promised –"

"You promised not to run away", he replied.

"And I won't. And if you want to hear it so badly, I will not try to attack you again. Another promise!" Maybe cooperation would bring me to my goal. Other than fighting… Not that I had much confidence in my cooperation skills.

Lestrange raised an eyebrow, but I felt in his loosened grip that he seemed to consider my words as reliable truth. He let out a grunt-like sigh and pushed my wrists away from him. "One wrong move and I'll hex you with a body-bind curse."

I simply nodded and gently stroke my wrists, my eyes avoiding his gaze by scanning the floor.

"So, now tell me. Who are you?", he then asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"I told you before, my name is Ginny, that was the truth." I looked up again.

"Why did you tell the Head girl your name's Tina?"

"It was… a back-up story", I began, knowing that I might as well stick to the truth for Lestrange did know everything anyway. "So that Tom wouldn't get into trouble."

"Trouble, huh? So you are not supposed to be here."

"Well, no…"

"Why are you here?"

I looked up at him, still massaging my wrists. "I don't know", I said quietly.

He tilted his bony head. "You don't know."

"That's what I said. I have no idea why I'm here."

"And you really think I'll believe that?"

"It's the truth!", I replied rather outraged. _Well, what did you expect…_

"Of course", Lestrange said, rolling his eyes. "So you just happen to be here. All of a sudden. Out of nowhere. Boom. Here I am. That's the story you want to stick to?"

"Yes", I whispered, staring at him. "I know it's hard to believe, but that's exactly how it happened."

"You actually popped up some day?"

"Didn't we all?", I replied, almost choking from the little laugh that was caught inside my throat.

"Where did you come from?", he asked on, ignoring my last comment.

"From… here."

"Funny", he said, staring at me with his jaw set. He reminded me a little of Tom at that moment. Apart from the brutal look in his eyes, and with the red scratch on his cheek basically screaming "Do not mess with me, I'm a bully". I almost jumped back as he took a step towards me, slowly uncrossing his arms as he did so.

"Well, I am, I am a Hogwarts student!"

"But you are not enrolled!", he bellowed, making me wince as his voice echoed off the dirty walls around us.

"That's because this is not my time!", I bellowed right back, before I realized that I might have said too much.

Silence greeted my outburst.

"What?", Lestrange said after a while of gaping at me.

"Um, nothing", I muttered, looking past him.

"You're a time traveler?"

"No."

He screwed up his eyes as he continued staring at me.

"Well, how else did you get here?"

"By bus! Enough with the questions already!", I sighed loudly.

"I think you're not in the position to demand anything!", he said and took another step forwards, one of his hands sliding into his pocket.

I knew what he was looking for. And I knew that he wouldn't find it. At least I had a little hope as I was pushed closer and closer towards the wall. Lestrange seemed to notice that he was missing what he was looking for. He immediately turned to me.

"Where is my wand?", he bellowed, coming even closer.

"I don't know", I replied, backing up again, until I felt the cold stone wall in my back.

"You had it. You had my wand as you Stunned me. Where is it?"

"I don't –"

But he wouldn't listen as his hands suddenly grabbed my robes. I gasped in shock and disdain as he simply tore the fabric apart and ripped it off my shoulders, leaving me already shaking in my skirt, blouse and sweater. I watched him rummaging through my robes before he threw them onto the floor. His eyes suddenly reminded me of the eyes of a hungry, no, starving animal. It seemed as if his pupils were pushing away the last remnants of his gray-blue irises, making his usually light eyes look totally black in the dimness of the corridor.

I swallowed hard as I realized what he was about to do.

But cold and shock pinned me motionless to the wall, as his hands began running up and down my body in order to look for the wand – that was lying safely somewhere else. Yet as I felt his fingers on the hem of my sweater, I broke my stupor and raised my knee, trying to make him stop, as my voice wouldn't want to work with me anymore. I seemed to have hit him somewhere fragile as he suddenly froze in mid-motion.

I was panting hard and used his short rigor to try and get away from him, but no. He had recovered rather quickly and suddenly his hands grabbed my shoulders, before he pinned me against the wall again. I stared at him with my mouth open. His face was only inches away from mine as he lowered his head. I could feel his breath on my cold skin. _I won't let you scare me…_, I thought, but even my mind grew numb and the words echoed unheard through my head.

"I said: one wrong move –", he hissed, his voice like needles, as his hands squeezed my shoulders violently. "ONE! WRONG! MOVE!"

The sudden outburst hit me straight in the face. I couldn't even blink away the shock, I just stared at him, my heart pounding in my ears as I realized how the situation had developed. My remaining hopes were literally blown apart.

"Unfortunately, I don't have my wand, and you don't seem to have it either, so no body-bind curses", he continued, his voice quite normal again (even though I didn't notice as I was still in shock about his last three words). "But don't worry, I'll think of other punishments!" To illustrate his words, I felt his hands slowly running down my arms; until his fingers reached the thin line between my skirt and sweater.

Swallowing hard, I bit my lip as he slipped his hands under my sweater, his touch ice cold on my freezing skin. I immediately began shivering and couldn't take it any longer.

"NO!", I screeched and quickly raised my arms to push him away.

He was actually pushed off his balance and fell against the opposite wall, staring at me with his mouth open in surprise. I gaped right back, before I dove down to pick up my robes. But one second too late, as he was already back at me, grabbing me brutally. I tried again to kick and punch him, but he grabbed my arms and bent them unnaturally until I felt tears of pain burning inside my eyes. Shaken by pain, I felt my knees give way, until I found myself kneeling on the floor, with Lestrange crouching beside me, one hand closed around my throat, the other still holding my arms.

"DON'T FIGHT ME!", he bellowed again, his voice echoing through the hallway.

"Don't touch me", I wanted to reply as loud as he had, but my voice wouldn't do me that favor.

A mere whisper escaped my throat that was squeezed lightly by Lestrange's hand. Tears of pain, fear and surrender ran along my cheeks and fell onto the cold stone floor without a sound. Lestrange's breath rang in my ears.

"I didn't want to do this, you know?", he then said, still crouching beside me, the hand that had held my throat now moving up to grip my chin to make me look at him.

"Well, you did", I muttered, blinking hard to get rid of the tears.

"And I'm not sorry. But you could have been more cooperative."

"Cooperative? How? You didn't even say what you wanted from me!"

"I just wanted to have some answers", he went on, our eyes locking.

"You took me here in order to get answers?" I couldn't believe it. "You could have just asked, you know? You didn't have to kidnap and molest me in order to get answers!" The tears were back. I felt like an animal pushed into a corner. There was no way out of this stupid situation.

"Molest you? I didn't molest you!"

"Well, there you go, that's your inspiration!", I muttered, more to myself.

"You really think I would molest you?"

"Well, what did you just do, then?", I tried to shout, staring directly into his eyes. My voice was as feeble as before.

"I just wanted to scare you…"

"Oh, you did well", I murmured. The echo of my mantra was growing a little louder. _I won't let you scare me. I won't let you –_

"You are easy to scare, you know?"

"Oh really?", I hissed at him. "How would you feel if you were kidnapped without a reason and brought into this godforsaken corridor, with a brutal guy not getting his hands off you, huh?"

He looked at me, his face growing a little softer. There even was the shadow of his usual grin playing around his lips. "What's wrong with that?"

"Excuse me?" My voice was a mere screech.

"I mean you're not bad looking, neither am I, and we're all alone –"

"Stop it! Stop it right there!", I bellowed, suddenly regaining a little more strength to at least straighten up on my kneeling position. "Do not finish that sentence!" I actually raised my hands in defense, as I tried to rob away from him.

"Why not? I don't think Riddle would mind –"

"STOP IT!", I bellowed again and jumped – to my utter surprise – to my feet.

Gaping at him, I slowly backed away, until I almost tripped over something lying on the floor. I swallowed and watched him getting to his feet, the grin back on his face.

This was too much to handle. Time to act.

"Oh my god, what is _that_?", I screamed with my eyes wide and pointed past him to the other end of the corridor.

The second he turned his head, I dove down on my hands and knees and launched at the wand I had re-discovered lying so close to us. My fingers closed around the small piece of wood, before I got back up on my feet, turning to face Lestrange.

Yet it seemed that Tom was not the only one to underestimate the bony faced boy.

Before I could even think of a hex, he had grabbed me, squeezing my right wrist with such a force that I couldn't help but drop the wand again. He caught it with his other hand and immediately pressed its tip against my throat, as he pulled his arm tightly around my waist to pin my back against his chest. It had all happened so fast that I couldn't even fight him. _And now it is too late because you're stuck again… good job!_

"I thought you wouldn't fight me anymore", he hissed into my ear, his anger as hot as his breath.

"I didn't", I whispered, feeling his wand sharp against my skin, as I tried to stretch my neck away from it.

"But you WANTED TO!", he bellowed, his voice ringing in my ear.

Shutting my eyes, trying to swallow, I suddenly felt more than helpless. I had underestimated him and that was now the prize I had to pay for my ignorance. Back to where we had started…

"Please, I'm sorry", I whispered, as he lowered the wand and ran its tip along my body. "At least I found your wand…"

"Good job", he whispered back, his cheek pressed against mine as he pulled his arm tighter around my waist, while he pocketed his wand. His free hand then found the hem of my sweater again, making me shiver badly as his fingers touched my stomach. "Let me thank you for that…"

And suddenly his hand was under my sweater, running upwards.

"No", I muttered but even I couldn't quite hear what I had said. "Please, don't –"

He loosened his grip on my waist and used both his hands to keep me silent. One of his hands found my chest while the other slipped under my skirt. I bit my lip forcefully as I felt his cold fingers between my legs.

"No, stop!", I whispered again, as I tasted the sulfurous flavor of my own blood in my mouth. The pain from my lip soon soared into my eyes, making the tears stream on.

"Don't cry!", he hissed back, and I was not sure whether that was supposed to be comforting or a demand.

I found myself completely motionless, with Lestrange pressing his body against mine while his hands kept running over my skin. _Was this it? You just let this happen? _Do I have a choice? _Yes, you always have a choice!_

And inside my stupefied mind a thought popped up. Slowly I moved my once immobile hands back to where I suspected his pants and the pocket that held his wand. Yet as soon as my fingers touched the fabric of his trousers, I felt Lestrange's head move a little, until his breath was echoing in my ears and his lips sucking on my neck.

He seemed to misinterpret my hands' movement, but I tried to ignore that and continued to feel for his pockets. Just as I felt something solid in of his back pockets, he suddenly turned me around and pinned me to the nearest wall, his hands immediately continuing their journey. Our eyes met for a second and I was again reminded of a starving animal.

My heart was pounding painfully in my chest as I tried to get my hand back to his hip pocket. I almost got hold of the little piece of wand sticking out of it, as he suddenly moved closer, pinning me even more to the wall by pressing his body against mine. I held my breath as he lowered his head to plant his lips on my neck, steadily moving up.

I finally got hold of his wand and carefully slipped it out of the pocket; but as soon as I wanted to mutter an incantation, I felt myself being silenced as Lestrange closed his lips hungrily around mine. I clutched the wand and tried to push him away with my other hand, but his body was pressing down heavy on me.

My mind was filled with words like "No!", "Stop it!" and "Get your filthy hands off me!", but everything went past unheard as he thrust his tongue into my mouth. I gasped (or I tried to as it was hard to do so with another face plastered on my own), feeling more and more violated as Lestrange's hands both gripped my behind, even lifting me up a little as he did so.

_If only I had learned to do non-verbal magic properly_, I thought frantically. _Well, now was the perfect time to practice!_

I clutched the wand harder and pointed it at Lestrange's back. But my head was filled with too many possible hexes that is was hard to concentrate on only one. Just as Lestrange's fingers were about to examine my underwear and as his tongue was forcing stronger inside my mouth, I felt something hot erupt from the wand's tip. While I dropped the red-hot piece of wood, I also felt my opponent go rigid, before his eyes widened and he drew away from me as if I had bitten him.

Whatever I caused his wand to do, it worked and got me free from his touch.

I immediately rushed past him and ran, forgetting about my still bleeding lip, my violently beating heart and my tingling skin, as my feet dragged me away, along the corridor. My footsteps echoed off the walls and almost drowned Lestrange's roar of fury. I ran and ran, my breath whistling through my throat, every inch of my body in physical pain (my mental pain was still held silent by the ever growing shock), but I wouldn't give up. Fear was dragging me along.

Some distance behind me, I could hear Lestrange's heavy breath and footsteps. I ran on. Every breath was like a sting to my lungs, every step shot a wave of pain thought my brains. But I kept running. I knew what would await me once I stopped. Once I gave up. Once –

Suddenly I felt a change of air and before I could realize it, the corridor was –

"Over?", I mouthed breathlessly and couldn't stop in time to avoid running against the metal door framing my view. I was literally knocked off my feet. Not only had the hallway come to an end, there was also a door. A door leading into freedom?

Ignoring the fast footsteps behind me, I got back to my feet and merely clutched the door handle, pulling with all my might.

But the door wouldn't move.

"No!", I let out a roar of despair as I pulled, pushed and twisted the doorknob in order to finally get away.

Lestrange's footsteps grew louder with every failed attempt of opening the door.

My heart was almost exploding in my chest as I kept thrusting against the door, tears of desperation filling my eyes.

"You need a password and a wand for that", a cold voice echoed through the corridor, making my blood freeze inside my veins.

The footsteps had stopped.

Shaking from head to toe, partly from exhaustion, partly from fear, I slowly turned around, awaiting my fate. Lestrange stood several feel away, panting, with one hand pressed to his chest, his pale cheeks flushed from running. I pressed myself helplessly against the cold metal door, staring at him in fear and disgust.

This was it then. Here I was, finally cornered. There was no way out of this misery…

I swallowed and winced heavily as Lestrange took a step towards me.

"Stay where you are!", I shouted, gathering all my courage.

"Or else?", he replied, an even darker grin playing around his lips. "You forget that I'm the one in charge here. I have the wand!"

_Oh he was right… unfortunately._

"What do you want?", I bellowed back, trying to remain steady even as my knees were growing weaker. "Apart from harassing me?"

"I want you to be careful", he then said, taking yet another step towards me.

I frowned at him.

"Do not mess with me!"

_Yes, I got that already! Next?_

"You are screwing up everything. I had plans. But you got between me and my target –"

"So why don't just get rid of me, then?", I yelled, shaking badly, almost driven mad by fear by now.

"Get rid of you?"

"Yes, kill me right here and do whatever you wanted to do before I crossed your plans!" My voice seemed to be breaking.

"No", he replied calmly and stopped a couple of feet away from me. "No, I won't kill you. I just want to warn you. Do not stick your nose into someone else's business."

_And you keep your tongue in your mouth_, I thought bitterly, remembering how he had kissed me. Even though I wouldn't call that a kiss…

"And remember to stay silent about this. Otherwise I'll go to Dippet and tell him that dear Riddle keeps someone illegal in his room. Now that might make the world of Mr. perfect Head boy tumble, wouldn't it?"

I stared at him. He suddenly raised an arm and I found myself being pointed at by his wand.

"I thought you wouldn't kill me", I whispered as he stepped closer, his arm still outstretched.

"I won't", he said and was suddenly standing right in front of me. "I'll just end this…"

My heart was pounding against my ribcage. He lowered his wand a little and – pointed it at the door handle. Without him saying anything (of course he had to know how to use non-verbal magic), the door jumped open and made me bounce a little forwards, right against Lestrange. He caught me by pulling an arm around me, the grin wide on his lips.

"Remember what I told you", he said and lowered his head.

Besides the urge to push him away, I felt another emotion rising. Resignation.

"So you're blackmailing me?"

"Exactly, redhead! You're so clever", he smiled and patted my head with the arm that held me. "I'll know when you misbehave and I'll be there to punish you."

"What if I'll behave?", I asked, my knees visibly shaking, as I tried to ignore his closeness.

"Our ways won't cross any longer", he replied, the hand of the arm holding me running along my back.

I swallowed and bit my lip, suddenly remembering the little wound as pain rushed through me once more.

"Stay away from me", he then said.

"I'd love to", I replied quietly.

He winked threateningly and turned to leave, not without kissing me broadly on my hurting lips. With that he walked past me through the open door, leaving me in the semi-darkness.

I listened until I couldn't hear his footsteps anymore, before I left the corridor as well, hoping to leave behind everything that had happened inside.

* * *

_**A/N:** Another update, another one without any Tom. I'm sorry. I had to write this without him, to make it more intense. I hope I succeeded!_

_If there are still things that confuse me, tell me exactly what confuses you and I try to explain!_

_So, this chapter is a little longer than usual, which hopefully gives me more time to write the next one, right? xD Until then, stay tuned!_

_Again I thank everyone for reading and reviewing! Remember: You guys keep me writing! Your support feeds my ideas! THANK YOU! _


	26. What Hurts The Most

Unfinished Business

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Chapter 17.1

As I returned to a much more familiar world, I couldn't help but feel extremely alone. Lonesome, left behind, the only soldier left in a world full of enemies. Laden with a task I couldn't fulfill on my own.

I knew I had to tell Tom everything.

Yet at the same time I was afraid of what might happen if I did. Even though the voice of reason kept telling me that Lestrange couldn't always watch me to make sure that I didn't tell on him, I somehow knew that I shouldn't underestimate him again.

I took a deep breath and continued my stumbling through the familiar dungeon corridor. Stumbling, and nothing more, as I felt not only all alone but also physically exhausted. With my head hammering, it was quite difficult not to fall down on the cold stone floor as I moved forwards, close to the wall in case my legs would give way. _You never knew…_

Knowing where I was nevertheless made me feel a little better, even though I was scared of what lay beyond this corridor.

I had to tell Tom!

But I didn't want him to have any trouble because of me.

_Wait a second before you loose yourself in confusion again, alright? How do you know that Lestrange actually does what he said he'll do if you tell Tom? And how should he know if you tell Tom in the Head common room__HeH__, where no Lestrange is able to go to? There's a good chance that you can tell Tom everything without Lestrange noticing._

But Tom won't just sit there and listen. He'll act. He'll confront Lestrange and then I'm doomed.

_No, you're not. Tom's clever. You don't want any trouble. And the same goes for him. Just tell him and then we'll see._

I wondered only halfheartedly how something that optimistic could live in my brains, right next to my growing self-doubt, fear and confusion. As I reached the staircase leading up into the Entrance Hall, my mind shut down. Emptiness lingered inside my head and I continued stumbling on. I felt on the verge of a mental breakdown, with tears burning behind my eyelids, ready to spill whenever the moment seemed right. But at the same time I felt too hollow to actually feel the need of crying or doing anything except walking on, wherever my steps would lead me in the end.

The sudden vastness of the Entrance Hall made me dizzy for a second. Bright light flooded over me like a large wave. I closed my eyes and somehow managed to sit down at the bottom of the marble staircase, a place I had often sat on, in various moods and situations. I wished I wouldn't always sit down when I felt the most miserable and vulnerable. I wished I would never feel vulnerable again… I had faced greater evil than I had today; fragments of an evil soul, creatures of the dark, monsters and nightmares, for Merlin's sake, I had faced the Dark Lord himself, but never had I felt as weak as I did right now.

I couldn't believe that Lestrange had such an effect on me. I slapped myself mentally for feeling like that. _He shouldn't make me feel like this!_ I won't let you scare me, remember? But I couldn't help it. He had scared me, tremendously. He was no obscure creature, he was real, a human being of flesh and bone. As real as I was – somehow. Him being as real as he was, made me feel even worse. I had never thought that a normal human being could be worse than any nightmare creature.

Over and over I felt his touch on my skin, the brutal pressure of his grip, the force of his lips, the echo of his breath. It made me shake visibly as I remembered the endless corridor and what had happened inside. It never occurred to me that I should be lucky about getting out of there. Never ever did I think about how lucky I was to sit here on the stairs. I escaped him – _he let you go _– I survived. But that didn't matter. I couldn't forget the hungry spark inside his eyes. Only Merlin knew what might have happened if I hadn't fought him.

I shook my head and buried my face in my hands. Only then did I realize the cold gripping my limbs. _Hold on. Where are my robes? Oh no._ More memories ruptured inside me. Lestrange's hands along my body again. His hot breath on my skin. His body weight pressing me against the wall. My robes on the floor. His hands under my sweater. A silent sob emerged from my throat and brought me back to reality. Pulling my arms around my knees, I swayed back and forth.

_Stop wailing now!_, the voice of reason broke through the mist of horrid memories and what-if-scenarios. _You're not helping anybody if you're like this! Get a grip, girl!_

I sobbed again and wiped over my ice-cold cheeks and trembling lips. Opening my eyes, I then looked around the deserted Entrance Hall, remembering my whereabouts and situation. Christmas, only a handful of students for a couple of weeks. Among them several people who would make life a living hell. And I was not even counting Tom. This was only about Lestrange, Malfoy and the threat lingering over me. And there was only one way of fighting back.

I needed my wand.

A sudden rage rushed through my veins as my mind worked out a plan for the future._Yes._ I shouldn't dwell in the past. I should take a step forward, away from everything that happened. Wailing did indeed bring me nowhere. My eyes wandered over the high walls of the Hall. The memory of Lestrange slowly faded to nothingness. Sorrow and fear ebbed away, soon to be replaced by a growing plan of revenge. _I won't let you scare me. Indeed I wouldn't!_

As strength returned to my limbs bit by bit, I quickly got up – too quickly that was, as I felt my head spin a little. I clutched the nearby banister and then began to ascend the marble staircase. I reached the first landing and looked around in confusion. _Where to go next?_ Distant footsteps solved my destination problem. But as soon as I turned around to look who was coming towards me, I felt something cold trickling down my spine. Another memory came back. Of footsteps in a dark and endless corridor. Of red eyes and a flash of green light. Of fear and panic. Of –

A hand on my shoulder made me scream in shock.

"Ginny!" a calm voice tried to soothe me.

I felt myself gently being grabbed by two hands and as my eyes focused on my opposite, I let out a sigh of purest relief. Fear fell off me like a second skin. And without another word I was pulling my arms around the neck so close to me. My desperate hug was soon returned and I found myself safely in the arms of Tom Riddle. I suddenly knew that the only foothold I had in this time was the one I had thought to be the bad guy. _How things had changed…_

"Are you alright?" I heard him ask quietly, as I continued clinging onto him.

"I'm fine now!" I whispered and pressed my face against his neck.

As my fears were fading away more and more, I realized how awkward my sudden fit of affection might look to Tom. I didn't know how much time had passed since we had left each other on the corridor where I had had the displeasure of meeting Lestrange, the only thing I knew was that if I would meet somebody as hysterical as I was, I would clearly think something was off. And Tom did too.

"What happened?" he asked and slowly lowered his arms to let go of me.

I slowly leant back and looked up at him (how good it felt to see a face so close that was not about to threaten you). But as soon as I stared into his dark eyes, I seemed to have forgotten everything else. The pain and panic I had had only minutes ago, suddenly felt rather foolish. Not to mention my fear of Lestrange. _So what? So he did threaten me. Big deal. Who am I to let myself being threatened by someone like him? Besides; I got away unharmed, didn't I?_

As I stared into Tom's eyes, I knew that I would not tell him anything.

I didn't want to seem weak and vulnerable – ever again.

_Never weak again? So you'd rather be stupid then?_

I can deal with that situation on my own, thank you!

_What's wrong with you? That Lestrange guy almost molested you in that godforsaken corridor, he threatened to do horrible things if you wouldn't obey. He could tell on Tom, he could ruin everything. And you don't want to talk to Tom about it? Now who's stupid?_

Shut up. I can handle this!

Says the girl who had a nervous breakdown just recently… 

"Nothing happened", I then replied and threw Tom a feeble smile. "I just missed you, that's all."

Liar! 

Am not! I did miss him.

Yeah, forget about the reason why… 

"So, what did Dippet want from you?" I quickly changed the subject, surprised about my own transformation.

"Actually, he didn't want anything," Tom said with a frown. "That note wasn't from him."

"Not?"

"No, I guess someone wanted to be funny," he replied with a shrug.

_And you know who that someone was!_, the voice of reason squealed.

Do I?

_Damn it, yes! It all makes sense now. Lestrange wrote that note and gave it to Susan who gave it Tom who then would be occupied with Head boy business and would have to leave you alone to do so. Bang. Enter Lestrange and his evil plan. He distracted Tom. He planned all that. And he succeeded in his plan; you're too scared to tell Tom anything! His plan got between you and Tom. Don't you see?_

I'm not scared!, I yelled back at the voice of reason, before I got back to reality and tilted my head at Tom. "Some people have a weird sense of humor."

They even have a weird sense of rage and lust, remember? 

"They do," he agreed. "Are you sure you're okay?"

I frowned._Incredible how well he looked inside my soul…_ "I am. I just… I just feel very sentimental today. Forgive me for that. I don't want to seem boring or weak."

Tom watched me closely, while his hands were resting calmly on my lower arms. "You're not. And you know that you don't have to hide anything from me, right? Not even your weak moments?"

_Just tell him – for crying out loud! It's as if he's offering you a golden plate. Just put your damn fears and thoughts on it already!_

"Actually, there is something I wanted to run past you," I then said.

"What is it?"

"Take me to the Chamber of Secrets."

_What? Are you insane?_ With that the voice of reason grew silent, sulking somewhere in the back of my mind.

"What?" His facial expression didn't change a bit, but I knew that my request was troubling him. His eyes were betraying him. "Why?"

"I was thinking," I began carefully, locking eyes with him as I did. "In order to adjust to this situation… I might need a wand. I can only become a fully accepted student here if I have a wand. So, I can't possibly leave the castle to buy me one, but I can go there where everything started. Where we first met. Maybe that's where my wand is."

Tom was considering me for another moment before he took a step back, grabbed my hand casually in order to get me going and began walking along the corridor. "I don't think that's a good idea, Ginny," he said quietly, as I hurried after him.

"Tom, I already know the entrance. I was there before, remember?"

"You don't know the entrance, you know one of its exits," he simply said.

"But still, I was there before. You can trust me, Tom, I'm –," I said, before I suddenly walked right into him. He had stopped in the middle of my sentence, turning his head towards me with his expression unreadable. I took a step back and tilted my head.

"I'm sorry, Ginny, I can't do that."

His words made me gape at him. "You can't do what?"

"I can't take you to the Chamber of Secrets."

"Why not?" I knew I shouldn't push him, but I was desperate for some change. I was desperate to have my wand back. And I knew – _I hoped_ – to find it in the Chamber.

"I just can't," was all he said, before he continued walking.

I quickly walked after him to catch up with him again. "Tom, please –,"

"Ginny, no!" he replied loudly and stopped again. He turned towards one of the large tapestries and seemed to examine its content. People with pointed hats were having a chess tournament. "I'm sorry," he added in a whisper.

I joined him in front of the tapestry and watched his profile closely. "Don't you trust me?", I then muttered.

He turned his head to me and I saw something weird inside his eyes. Concern. "That's not why I can't take you there."

_Insert the I trust you here and forget about the complicated way Tom Riddle's mind works._

"So what's the matter then?"

"I don't want you to get hurt," he then said quietly, while turning his head away again. The chess party began to stare back at us. I stared at Tom.

_You know, it would be easier for me not to get hurt if I had a wand. I don't care about some monster that's hiding in your freaking chamber that might be dangerous! I do care about the monsters on the loose, your so-called friends. Or minions._ If only I could tell him exactly what I thought…

You could always try! 

You shut up!

"Tom," I began softly and moved closer to him, my hands already getting hold of his upper arm. "I appreciate that, but –"

"But?" His voice sounded a notch away from being agitated.

"I just really, really want to know if I might find my wand inside the chamber. I'm almost certain it's there and I really, really need it. I –,"

While I was basically begging for his understanding, he had pushed aside the tapestry and was now pointing at an old wooden doorframe. The door itself was a large portrait of a giant snake. There was no door handle whatsoever.

"Does that mean – ?"

"I trust you, Ginny. I'm just concerned," he said and looked at me before he let go of the tapestry that soon after blocked the view on the door again. "I myself does not quite understand what that chamber really is capable of. I don't want you to step into something you can't control."

I watched him closely. _Can_you_ control it?_

"I think I'll be fine," I replied with a genuine smile. "If you're with me."

Tom's eyes wandered back towards the tapestry. "But I can't come with you," he said quietly and watched the chess party argue about the next move.

"What?"

"I mean not now, I have to go somewhere else."

"Where?"

My, are you nosy today! 

"I have to meet my minions," he answered and looked up. I would have gaped at him in utter surprise if he hadn't thrown me a smirk.

"You mean… Malfoy and Lestrange?" I asked carefully.

Tom nodded.

"Why?"

_Nosy! _Shut it!

"Occasional get-together," he said and turned away from the tapestry. "Although I do have a reason to speak to Lestrange."

Something inside my brains cracked. "What?" _Damn, you suck at hiding your feelings!_

"Did you forget? He slapped you! I will not stand for that!"

"Oh, that," I mouthed and exhaled nervously. "But… um, I think you shouldn't do that."

That earned me yet another quizzical look from Tom.

"I mean, it's…. uh, it's the holidays. You wouldn't want to kill the holiday spirit by maybe breaking loose a fight or an argument or –"

"Ginny, that guy should not get away with that. He has no right to interrogate you like this. I'll just make that clear to him."

"And… and you think he'll understand?"

"He will." _Oh Tom, don't underestimate him again!_

"But, Tom, I… I don't think that's a good idea. I mean, take your scratch –," I said and pointed at the still visible red line near his hairline. "He did that and I think he's capable of even… worse things."

"I know," Tom replied to my utter surprise.

"You… _know_?"

"We bonded over that," he replied and looked along the hallway.

"What?" _Do you really want to tell me that?_

But instead of breaking into stories of old times, Tom turned away from the tapestry and began walking towards the other end of the corridor.

"Tom, please don't go!" I shouted after him, before I caught up with him.

"Why not?" he asked and stopped in his tracks.

"Because –"

Time for the truth! Finally! 

"Because I'm scared for you!"

_That is not the truth! _Yes it is – just, not the entire truth…

Tom looked at me in confusion.

"I… I don't want that stupid Lestrange get angry and hurt you even more. It was just a… slap… nothing… serious…" _You don't believe your own words, you hypocrite!_

"Ginny, I can take care of myself, don't worry. I've dealt with Lestrange before!" And again he turned away to walk on.

"But he'll ruin _everything_!" I then blurted out, unable to keep it inside anymore.

He slowly turned around to me and watched me with his expression unreadable. "What do you mean?"

"He knows," I simply said and lowered my head in exhaustion. "He knows everything!"

"He knows what?"

"Everything," I said, before it just poured out of me. "He knows my real name and he knows that your father didn't have a sister and that my back up story is fake. He doesn't know where I'm from, but he knows that I shouldn't be here. And he is going to use that against you! He's plotting against you! He's the enemy, Tom! He'll tell Dippet if I tell you about it and he'll do bad things and –"

"How do you know all this?" he asked, looking at me semi-suspicious, semi-alarmed.

"He… um, told me."

"When?"

"Um… today…"

Tom narrowed his eyes and tilted his head. "He sent the note, didn't he?"

I merely nodded.

"And he wanted you to know that you shouldn't mess with him? That he knows everything?"

I nodded again. "After you left, he… I met him in the hallway and… well, he kind of… brought me to this other corridor and told me what I just told you and he…" My memory was collapsing again. A desperate tear broke free from my lashes.

"What did he do?" Tom was staring at me.

"He… Tom, I don't want you to go to him and let him know that you know about what he did … he'll tell on you. He'll ruin everything!"

"What did he do?" he asked again, his voice razor-sharp.

"He… kissed me," I whispered. _That's all you can remember? Of all the things that guy did to you, you only remember the kiss? You think that's most relevant? Now… that's disturbing! _It is… isn't it?

Tom seemed to think the same. He didn't wait for any more explanations, he just stormed away along the hallway. Destination well-known. Paralyzed by my own memory I simply walked after him, unable to hold him back. I knew how this was going to end. And I didn't like the prospect of Lestrange telling Dippet and of me having to leave the castle … or worse. I'd never thought about what would happen if any staff member would find out about my illegal being here. And now that I was thinking about it, I didn't like the way it was heading.

We turned several corners and headed down innumerable staircases until we eventually walked along a musty corridor somewhere in the dungeons. The destination was an open riddle: the Slytherin common room. _Oh I didn't like that!_ And as if fate was toying with me, I suddenly saw two figures emerge through a seemingly solid wall. I suddenly felt extremely cold as I saw Malfoy and Lestrange walking closer to where Tom was heading – until they all stopped somewhere in the middle of the corridor, staring at each other. I remained in a save distance, feeling utterly helpless.

"Riddle," Lestrange said and tilted his bony head. "What a surprise to meet you down here."

"We need to talk, Lestrange," Tom replied without twisting a muscle.

"Sure, go ahead."

As he was answering Tom, I saw his eyes flicker towards me – and I suddenly knew what he was thinking. _You actually told him, then. Well, you know what awaits you, redhead! _My blood was freezing inside my veins.

"Tom, no!" I immediately blurted out, with my voice echoing off the musty walls.

But too late: As Tom had already stepped forwards – punching his fist straight into Lestrange's face.

* * *

**A/N:**_My dear readers: I am terribly sorry for having neglected this story for so long (almost two months, I'm a horrible person!); to say it like that: I was busy. There were personal issues, there was university, there was so much. I didn't exactly have a writer's block – for I've been writing another story (non fan-fiction) these last months, something that might give me a chance as a real author. Yet I couldn't stay away from Tom and Ginny any longer and due to some people telling me to continue, I did._

_And here I am, with an update! And a major cliffhanger! Forgive me for that! But – on the bright side – I've already written half of the next chapter and have lots of ideas inside my head. So you can stay tuned!_

_Again I am thanking everyone who reviewed and kept to this story even though I haven't updated in ages. THANK YOU for your support and I really hope that you'll stay with me now that I am back!_


	27. Your Sins Into Me

Unfinished Business

* * *

"_Tom, no!" I immediately blurted out, with my voice echoing off the musty walls. _

_But too late: As Tom had already stepped forwards – punching his fist straight into Lestrange's face._

Chapter 17.2

Suddenly all hell broke loose.

Malfoy had gotten out his wand, pointing it at Tom, whereas Lestrange was holding his bleeding nose, glaring at Tom. Tom simply stood in the middle, looking particularly angry – and I was frozen to the spot I was standing, watching the three Slytherins in a mixture of horror, shock and stupor. The next second there were spells and hexes bouncing off the walls, then the clattering of wands flying through the air and then … something I wouldn't have thought possible.

A fist fight.

A simple Muggle fist fight. No magic, just pure hatred and violence. I glared down at Tom and Lestrange rolling over the floor, punching, hitting, strangling each other. Malfoy was leaning against the nearest wall, looking equally surprised. Another second or two passed by, before I broke my stupor and launched forwards. Grabbing Tom by his shoulders to pull him away from Lestrange, I tried to end what I seemingly had started.

Yet it only made things worse. Tom was just blocking a punch from Lestrange who was quickly getting back to his feet to use Tom's being on the floor for his advantage. I clang onto Tom, trying to get him away from the roaring beast that Lestrange suddenly became. But Tom wasn't any different. He pushed me aside in a rush as he blocked another punch of Lestrange and began punching him back. I stumbled against the nearest wall, staring at the two boys in sheer disbelief. They were fighting each other as if there was no tomorrow.

"Stop it!" I yelled over and over but my shouts remained unheard.

I watched in silent stupor how Lestrange got hold of Tom's collar and began hitting his face like a sandbag. A moment later, his face utterly red and swollen, Tom grabbed Lestrange's throat and pushed him over to do the same as he had done to him. From second to second the scene would change and beats and knocks were swapped. Robes were ripped apart, hair was pulled and limbs strangled. Even though it felt as if this would have been going on for ever, I realized that only seconds had passed.

My realization drove me forwards again.

I simply walked right between them, pushing hands away and bodies apart. It cost me great strength to keep them away from each other – but even over the hits that landed on me instead, I somehow managed to push Tom away from Lestrange, yet not without a severe blow to the head by a still angry looking Lestrange. While I saw Tom leaning breathlessly against a wall, I felt Lestrange's fist hit my temple. Lightning rushed through my nerves and the next moment I felt a hand grabbing my arm, keeping me from hitting the ground.

But I didn't faint as I had wished for. I simply sank to the floor, my head spinning viciously. There were shouts growing louder and then there was Lestrange's form looming over me. I blinked several times and saw Tom where Lestrange had stood just a second ago. I blinked again and then Tom was kneeling beside me. I sat up slowly, holding my thumbing head. Over the noise inside my skull I heard Tom yell at Lestrange.

"We're not done yet, Lestrange!"

"Oh I think we are!" the other boy replied.

"Don't you dare lay a hand on her ever again!" Tom's voice was quiet but ice-cold and seemed to have an effect on Lestrange. The next time he spoke, his voice was as quiet as Tom's, but I could still hear that he wouldn't put down the weapons anytime soon.

"Do you think Dippet might find this interesting?"

"That is none of Dippet's business – or yours!" Tom said quietly, almost in a hypnotic manner. "He won't believe you anyway!"

As the pain inside my head moved a little, I could focus on the look that Tom was giving Lestrange. He was staring right into the other boy's eyes – who to my utter surprise nodded stupidly. Tom also exchanged a glance with Malfoy, who was still leaning dumbstruck against a wall. He nodded as well and soon the two Slytherins rushed past. And even though they seemed to have a silent agreement, I knew that Lestrange might not keep to it. As his eyes met mine on his way past us, I felt something inside rapture. A burning pain.

Tom then turned to me and threw me a caring look. His once pale and handsome face was flushed and oddly distorted. His left eye was black and there were bleeding cuts and colorful bruises on his cheeks and jaw line. His lower lip looked twice its normal size. I raised my hands slowly and carefully cupped his face. He winced only slightly. His right eye smiled at me.

"Are you alright?" he asked quietly.

I nodded and ran my thumbs gently over his bruised cheeks. "But you look as if you need to see the nurse," I replied with a smile of my own.

It just then sank into me what had just happened. Tom had gotten into a fight with Lestrange who formerly was one of his so-called friends. And all of that just because of me. If that wasn't a sign that he cared for me. It actually was the first sign, the first evident display of affection, that he had offered me in public. _Well, the second after that kiss-in-the-snow-and-Entrance-Hall. _I thanked him by tiptoeing in front of him, carefully placing my lips onto his. The corners of his mouth twitched slightly, before he pulled an arm around me and together we stumbled off towards the hospital wing.

"He actually pulled some of your hair out!" I said thoughtfully as I sat down beside Tom on the bed somewhere in the back of the cold and deserted infirmary. My fingers were carefully running through his hair as I had found the little spot somewhere near his right ear.

"Forget about that," he replied, sounding utterly tired. "It doesn't matter."

"So what are you going to do next? What if he really goes to Dippet?" I asked and hooked my arm into his.

"He won't," Tom answered quietly, his face almost paper white against his black hair. The nurse had already fixed most of his scratches and bruises. The black eye was the only evidence that remained of the fight with Lestrange.

"How can you be so sure?"

"I just am," he replied. "I don't know why, but I always thought I seem to be kind of –"

"Persuasive," I finished for me, looking down.

"I guess."

"Can you read minds, Tom?" I then asked. I didn't know why, but now seemed to be the perfect time to talk about his little quirks. I looked up cautiously.

Tom threw me a surprised glance. "Can I read minds?" He furrowed his forehead and watched me closely. "I don't think I can."

"Maybe not now, but maybe there have been times when you –"

"What are you trying to say, Ginny?"

"I just… well, I do find you very persuasive and I sometimes wonder… well, if you are manipulating the people around you. If you're manipulating me." I bit my lip as I awaited his reply.

But Tom just raised an eyebrow and smiled. "I'm not manipulating you," he said. "At least not willingly."

I chuckled at that. He might be right. He didn't seem to do anything he did willingly. He just seemed to have this effect on other people. No evil mind powers. Just… charm. Yes, he had lots of that.

"So you're not reading other people's minds to make them do whatever you want them to do?" I just couldn't help myself. I was on a roll.

He threw me another glance. "What makes you think I could?"

"I don't know, it just sometimes feels as if you're manipulating the people around you in order to get what you want." _Enough with the honesty already!_

"And what is it that I want?" I couldn't quite figure out if his voice was amused or agitated.

"I don't know," I then replied, feeling that it might not yet be the time to talk about the dark future plans. "I was just thinking. I mean, I envy you for having such an effect on people. I certainly never got what I wanted just by looking at people. And that with my brown eyes!"

That made Tom actually smile. I smiled back and leant against him. He pulled one arm around me and I felt him relaxing next to me. It was then that the nurse came back and told Tom to lie down. I got off the bed and stood beside it, watching the nurse putting something greenish on Tom's black eye. It smelled of raw meat, garlic and feet. Unwashed feet. I wouldn't want to have changed places with Tom right now.

"Stay like this for another hour, Mr. Riddle, and the bruise will be gone." With that the nurse left again.

I watched her leave, before I sat down on the edge of his bed and couldn't help but laugh at the sight of Tom. He watched me out of his normal eye with a tormented expression on his face.

"You'll have your beauty back, I'm sure," I then said with a smirk and tilted my head. He simply raised an eyebrow.

I lowered my head, still smiling, and began playing with the fingers of his hand. It was then that he gently grabbed my arms and pulled me onto the bed. I ended up resting my head on his chest, cuddling against him on the rather small bed. Pulling his arms around me, he soon made the cold that had been gripping me go away.

"What exactly happened after I left, Ginny?" he asked after a while of silent peacefulness that soon popped like a giant soap-bubble.

I sighed and turned my head a little to press my cheek against his chest. His heart was beating steadily inside. "I… I don't want to talk about that…," I whispered. And sure I didn't. I had pushed Lestrange out of my head for good.

"I'm just trying to help you," he went on, his voice quiet, his words reverberating through his body as he spoke. "I want to understand."

"Me too," I said and felt my voice broke. Tears were burning inside my eyes whereupon I squeezed them shut forcefully.

"Tell me what he did."

_Tell him! It'll help! He already confronted Lestrange, so what else could happen? Do it. Come on!_

"After you… left," I began, whispering against his chest. "Lestrange ambushed me and… dragged me outside into the snow… where… there was a hidden entrance into the dungeons I guess. I don't know, we just… landed inside this corridor somewhere underneath the castle. He…" I took a deep breath, with my eyes remaining shut as I recalled what had happened. "He threatened me with his wand, to hex me if I would say anything. I… I still don't really know why… he got me there and what he had intended to do… I just…" My voice broke again. I felt Tom's hands ran soothingly over my back. "I was really scared, Tom," I then whispered, feeling tears spill from underneath my eyelashes.

I reached up hectically to wipe them away, not without Tom noticing.

"It's alright, Ginny, it's over," he said quietly and held me even closer.

"Is it really?"

"I'll take care of that. And of you."

As cheesy as it sounded and as unreal coming from him, it did make me feel better. I sighed deeply and cuddled against him.

"How did it end?" he asked on. I only halfheartedly noticed his interest in the topic.

"I…," I whispered, trying to keep a steady voice. "We somehow got into a fight where I tried to get away from him, but he always came back at me. I… I then got hold of his wand and Stunned him. But I wouldn't get away. That… corridor was… I don't know, I've never seen anything like it. It wouldn't end. I ran and ran but… nothing. I… I felt as if I would lose my mind." The last words emerged me as an almost audible whisper.

"What happened?"

It felt surreal for me to recall the memory of meeting his future self in the corridor. Illusion – _hallucination_ – or whatever it was, it made me feel as if I indeed lost my mind somewhere in the depths of the corridor of doom. _You have to stop referring to Tom as the teenage self of the Dark Lord. He is still only Tom Riddle and no one else._ And I'm not wondering why this is coming from the voice who had made it clear ever since that Tom already was Voldemort. _I might have the right to change my mind?_ And I won't question that the voice of reason, _my_ mind, had its own mind… my, am I really losing my mind here?

"In that corridor, I met… someone from my time. Someone… really… terrible," I then replied, trying to ignore the confusion inside. "You see, there was a wizard in my time –"

_Do you think it's wise to tell him of his future?_ It doesn't have to be his future! _But it is!_ No, not yet! He can still choose something else. _Yeah, try and tell him about that powerful wizard ruling the earth. That might show him what he's missing! _Ah shut up already!

"– and this wizard was, well, he was rather powerful. But he was evil. A dark wizard who brought war and destruction upon the Wizarding world. Twice. Many people died, the world, even the Muggle world, was –" I might have gone too far here. _Suit yourself!_ "It didn't look good for any of us. That wizard… well, he is the reason why I am here. He killed me."

"I must admit," he replied quietly. "I had neglected the thought of how you came here. Of how we met. I somehow accepted your existence here."

_Well, how nice!_ Shut it, that's exactly what I wanted to achieve! Him accepting me!

"I've learned to forget about my former life as well, Tom," I replied.

"But still you've met this… dark wizard?"

"I didn't really meet him, I just… I guess I was so scared that I imagined things. I imagined standing face to face with him again, just like the time I… well, end of that story was that I fainted whereupon the Stunning hex on Lestrange was lifted and…" _Now that was an extreme change of topic. From one monster to the next._ "Well, the horror continued…," I whispered.

"What happened?"

"Well, Lestrange found me again and questioned me. About everything, who I was, where I was from and what not. He repeatedly told me to stay out of his business even though I don't have any idea what he is up to. Not entirely at least. I have guesses but a guess is nothing but speculation. Less than that. Then –"

I suddenly remembered the worst part of having been alone with Lestrange in that godforsaken corridor. I had suppressed it.

"He… well, he was looking for his wand which I had had before but lost as I had met… as I had hallucinated. So he… ripped off my robes and searched me and…"

A weird feeling was rushing through me like burning oil.

"I tried to fight him, but –" I muttered, my voice shaking noticably.

"What did he do?" I felt Tom stiffen underneath me, his arms remained tightly wrapped around me.

"He didn't just kiss me," I then said, squeezing my eyes shut to repress the memories. "He… tried to… I…" The words came out in pieces, as if the connection between my brains and lips was broken. "His hands… everywhere… and he… didn't stop… couldn't fight him… really scared… he was so… violent…"

"Ginny."

"He just wouldn't… I tried everything… but…"

"Ginny!"

Without noticing, I had started to sob heavily against Tom's chest. I then realized that I was in a sitting position, with Tom pressing myself against him soothingly. I tried to steady my ruptured breath by just leaning against his arms. Tears dropped ruthlessly from my chin. A minute passed before I had calmed down a little. I sighed deeply and raised my hand to wipe away the tears, but Tom was quicker as his hand already rested on my cheek, his thumb gently wiping clean my face.

"He is going to pay for what he has done," he then whispered and pulled me closer to him. "I promise."

I sobbed repeatedly and only nodded, not really taking in the significance of his words.

"It's over now," he went on and then lay down again, with me cuddling against him. "You're safe with me."

_I really hope I am_, I thought and savored the warmth of our embrace. I soon after find myself growing really tired and without fighting the urge, I then fell asleep right on top of Tom's chest. Darkness fell and fatigue covered my body like a soothing blanket. Darkness was good, darkness was… And sleep washed over me.

Darkness remained for quite a while until there was something else. Something equally black, but much more frightening. Caught deep within the realm of dreams, I couldn't even fight the sensation that rushed through me as my dream-self wandered helplessly through a dark hallway, longer than I've had ever seen, darker than I've had ever experienced, with monsters before and behind me, with shadows crawling up and down the musty walls, with footsteps echoing off the black ceiling, with every form of fear I had ever witnessed in my life.

I ran and ran and didn't seem to move an inch. Footsteps were growing louder, darkness thicker and fear unbearable. Something grabbed my dream-self by the shoulders. I was spun around brutally and was suddenly face to face with a hooded figure whose gray-blue eyes stared at me as if they wanted to burn themselves right into my brains. I tried to scream but nothing happened. I tried to run but my legs wouldn't move. Then the figure lifted its hood.

Fear stabbed me like the sharpest knife known to mankind. It felt as if I would be ripped apart from inside out. The worst had a new face. There was messy black hair, there was a pale face and there two ice-cold eyes.

Lestrange.

Hands were gripping me and even though I had expected their touch to burn, I felt something else. Something that frightened me even more.

Pleasure.

Darkness was pushed away and I awoke with a scream. Back in the hospital wing, back in Tom's arms, back with new problems.

* * *

A/N: As promised: another chapter. Cliffhanger solved ... and something new thrown into the crowd. Ahem. So, I hope to write the next part as soon as this is uploaded as I'm away for the weekend. But don't fear - I feel like I am back in business with Tom and Ginny.

So, I hope you enjoyed this. I'll make this quick. THANK YOU everyone for reading and reviewing! You guys make my day!

A little edit concerning the ... edit-thingie here on ff dot net. I don't seem to be able to write anything in bold letters. Or italique (this text is supposed to be in italique letters!). What's with that?


	28. Change of Venue, Change of Heart?

**Unfinished Business**

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**Chapter 18**

I had spent the rest of the night in the hospital wing, comfortably cuddled against Tom. As the pale morning sun rose from behind the mountains, I was already on my way back to the Head common room. The nurse had left Tom completely recovered and there was now no evidence left that there had ever been a fight. The only remnant was my memory.

As I usually did, more or less successfully, I had suppressed that as well as the disturbing dream and was now walking along the third floor with my arm hooked into Tom's. After the events of yesterday I now felt quite confident about what we had. It looked more and more like a seemingly normal relationship. We had started with a foundation of intimacies and had build a framework of trust and care and, quite freshly, honesty upon it. It felt good and I knew that Tom was growing for it as well. I didn't want to pat my own shoulder right about now, but I was certain that I had pushed him into the right direction.

We just reached a staircase leading to the second floor as a voice echoed after us.

"Tom!"

Tom turned his head while I followed his move. We then both stared at the approaching Head girl who hurried towards us with her robes billowing behind her.

"Susan?" Tom asked with his forehead furrowed.

"Where have you been? I've been looking for you all morning!" Susan panted, holding her sides.

"What's the matter?"

"Someone flooded the Great Hall!"

"What?" I exchanged a glance with Tom. Something hot twisted my insides.

"Yes, someone flooded the Great Hall, and no, I can't take care of that myself. Even Dippet can't do anything against it. It looks like particularly dark magic to me. We need more people to try and stop it simultaneously. I need you, Tom!"

I opened my mouth, but Tom interrupted me.

"You're honestly telling me that you need me to stop this flooding when Dippet and Dumbledore have already tried? Are you kidding me, Susan?"

"Damn it, Tom, this is serious. Besides, Dumbledore's not here, he had to leave yesterday. Merlin knows why. The only staff members present are Dippet and Slughorn, and forgive the remark, but neither of them seems to be able to do anything."

"Susan, I –"

"If you're not coming with me right now, Tom, I'll ask Dippet to dismiss you!"

That made Tom gape at the Head girl. I felt the knot grew larger.

"Now come _on_!" Susan then urged and rushed past us.

Tom looked after her, his jaw set. "Ginny, I –"

"Tom, that's a trap!" I then blurted out, unable to hold it any longer.

He raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Guess who flooded the Great Hall!"

"No –"

"Why not? It's possible that he tries to get to you through pranks now!"

"But I have to –"

The Head girl's voice echoed back to us with an energetic "TOM!".

"I know," I sighed and unhooked my arm. "I know how important your badge is for you –" My eyes flew to his green and silver Head boy badge on his robes. I stroked the snake on it gently with my index finger. "I'll be fine." I put all my strength into my last words.

He looked at me as if trying to read my mind. I simply nodded and smiled. "I'll meet you in the common room. You know the latest password?"

I nodded again. "I'll be fine, Tom!"

"You sure?"

"It's not far from here. I'll take some short cuts and will be save in the Head common room soon after. I won't let him scare me twice."

"You're really brave, did I ever tell you that?" He smiled and leant down to kiss me. "See you later."

"Hurry and save the day," I smirked and watched him hurry down the stairs, while my heart began to sink.

All alone again.

I pushed away my fear and began descending the stairs, willing to reach the Head common room without any disturbances. But just as I reached the first floor, I already saw a figure standing right before my escape into safety. I pressed myself against the nearest wall and carefully peeked around the corner. Someone was examining the portraits on the wall. Someone with blond hair. Malfoy.

_Now where is your little friend?_

I bit my lip to repress a desperate sigh. My heart was pumping wildly against my ribcage. _What was I to do now?_ I couldn't just wait here for Malfoy to go away. _Yet where could I go?_ What kind of a place was safe for me to hide? The library was on the other side of the castle. Back to the hospital wing was foolish._Where? Where?_

It then occurred to me that the bathroom of Moaning Myrtle was on the same floor. Closer than the portrait of the wizard with the pointed hat. Yet right in the middle of Malfoy's sight. _If I just could get there quick enough…_

It was worth a try!

I slowly crept around the corner, before I simply hurried over the corridor, along the wall, until I made a left and dove into the deserted bathroom. _If only the door wouldn't squeak that loud! _I pressed myself against it and held my breath in sheer panic. I almost screamed as Moaning Myrtle materialized right in front of me.

"What are you doing?" she asked nosily.

"Playing hide and seek," I replied frantically and listened for noises from the other side of the door.

"Ooh, can I play too?"

"I don't –"_Oh no! Footsteps!_ "I don't know, but you could help me by being extra quiet!" I whispered, still listening closely.

But Moaning Myrtle just gaped at me. "Why are you whispering?" she asked with her voice echoing off the walls of the bathroom. She clearly never played hide and seek. I gesticulated wildly for her to stay silent, but too late. Someone was pushing against the door. My heart was almost crashing. I dove into the nearest cubicle and crouched myself onto the toilet seat.

The door opened with a squeak.

A giggle was heard. I frowned and pressed myself against the wall behind the toilet, desperate not to be noticed. I then heard Myrtle's voice and it was what she was saying that almost made me fall off the toilet.

"She's in there!"

"Thanks, beautiful," a male voice replied.

Another giggle, then there were more footsteps and suddenly the door of the cubicle I was crouching in was being opened. I didn't wait for a face to show up. I simply jumped off the seat and pushed against the figure opening the door. There was a second of shock before I saw Malfoy gaping at me angrily. I rushed past him before he had the chance to grab me, and exited the bathroom as fast as I could.

I ran towards the portrait and was about to shout the password at the wizard within, as I was literally blown off my feet. Malfoy had grabbed me with both his arms and had knocked me over with a force that made me catch my breath as I hit the floor hard. I tried to loosen his grip by struggling and kicking, but he simply got back to his feet and pressed me against the nearest wall, his wand pinching my cheek. I held my breath in shock as he watched me over with a smirk on his face that was quite similar to that of his future grandson.

Just as he was opening his mouth, I heard footsteps approaching.

"Let her go immediately, Malfoy!"

It must have been the shock and my heart pounding inside my ears why I didn't recognize Tom's voice at once, but as I looked over Malfoy's shoulder I saw him walking towards the other Slytherin with his wand raised.

"Let her go!"

Malfoy hesitated before he lowered his wand and let go of me. I immediately pushed past him and ran towards Tom.

"Now get the hell out of here!" Tom bellowed.

With that Malfoy was gone.

I sighed in relief as I turned to Tom. "That was close," I said and massaged my left side.

"You okay?"

I nodded. "Thank Merlin, you got here so quickly. Actually, marvelous how quickly you got away from the flooding."

"That whole thing was easier handled than I had thought," he replied and pocketed his wand, before he playfully grabbed my waist. "But never mind that, I'm back now."

"I can see that," I said with a smile as he pulled me closer towards him.

His eyes were wandering over my face and for only a second I noticed a slight change about his features. Maybe it was the lighting of the hallway that made his eyes look so bright. The second passed and I suddenly found myself lips to lips with Tom. I giggled against his lips.

"We wanted to go to your room, remember?" I whispered as his lips moved over my cheek towards my earlobe.

"I've changed my mind," he said in between kisses. "Let's go somewhere else!"

"But," I began as he was nibbling on my earlobe, making it particularly hard for me to utter anything. "But I thought we wanted to get away from Lestrange. And… the only place… would have been the Head common room… now… wouldn't it?"

He continued kissing my ear, before he whispered. "Lestrange has been taken care of."

I wanted to question that statement, but he had already closed his lips around mine again, pulling me into a breathtaking kiss. And again I found myself being persuaded by Tom Riddle. And again I didn't care. I clung onto him, willing to let go of everything that bothered me. I forgot about the fact that we were in the middle of the hallway and that there was a good chance for us to be seen by anyone passing by. All I thought about were Tom's lips and the warmth he made me feel after such a long period of cold.

I actually forgot about the fact that less than twenty-four hours ago, I had been a captive of – No. Never mention that ever again! Remember to forget!

I then realized that Tom was dragging me along the hallway. Having pulled my arms around his neck, I tried to turn my face a little to be able to speak. Tom continued kissing my neck. "Tom," I whispered breathlessly as he was about to descend the stairs. "Tom!" Clinging onto each other as we did, it was quite difficult to not fall down the stairs. I loosened my grip around his neck and tried to grab the banister. "Tom," I tried again but he didn't react. We somehow managed to reach the ground floor without breaking our necks.

"Where are we going?" I then giggled into his ear as he placed hectic kisses onto my jaw line.

He eventually leant back a little and looked at me, equally out of breath. A smirk then broke from his lips. "Surprise!" was all he said as he grabbed my hand and pulled me along a narrow corridor leading towards a rather small spiral staircase. From the last bits of orientation left inside of me, I could tell that we were somewhere on the ground level, but not even close to the Great Hall and by the looks of that staircase we were heading down into the dungeons. A chill ran across my spine.

"Tom, are we heading to the Slytherin common room?" I then asked as we had descended the stairs.

He stopped in his tracks, his hands grabbing my waist a little tighter. "Now you spoiled the surprise," he grinned and immediately continued kissing me.

"But," I tried to say and lightly pushed him away from me. "Tom, that's not a good idea. Malfoy and Lestrange will be there! I really don't want to see any of them… ever again!"

He sighed and stepped a little away, his eyes flickering over me in the dark of the underground hallway. "Ginny," he began and I hoped I imagined his voice sounding agitated. "I didn't mean to… well, I don't want you to feel uncomfortable. I was just thinking that a change of venue might be nice. The common room is huge, we surely can avoid running into Malfoy or Lestrange."

I watched him for another second, trying to remain calm as my fears began to rise inside of me again. He lowered his head and slowly came towards me again, his hand reaching out to grab mine. His fingers closed gently around mine and as he was standing right in front of me, he looked up. I bit my lip as I felt myself being absorbed into his gaze.

"You have to trust me," he concluded.

I looked at him. "You know I do, it's just –"

"Don't worry."

"But –"

"You really worry too much," he said with a grin a bit unlike him.

Before I could find any more excuses, his lips were on mine again and I felt that there was no way of telling him again how weird this whole idea was to me. But after a moment it didn't seem to matter anyway. We stumbled across the hallway and I didn't even notice how exactly we got into the Slytherin common room, I was once more silenced by Tom's persuasion. Or kissing skills.

I merely threw a quick glance at the simple and cold furnishing and even ignored the green glow that seemed to hover around us, as Tom led me up a short stone staircase. As we entered a room somewhere at the end of a long corridor, all my doubts about meeting Lestrange or Malfoy again were blown away. The room looked quite alike to Tom's room, even though there were two four-poster-beds, one on each wall, and no floor-to-ceiling windows, but small cubic scuttles that showed nothing whatsoever through the dark green glass.

"So," he asked as he took a break from kissing me, while he still held me close. "What do you think of this change of venue?"

"I think," I answered and kissed him quickly. "Your idea wasn't that bad after all."

With that Tom pushed me tenderly towards one of the beds. I sat down and watched how he got out his wand and hexed the door close. I felt safer right away. He then walked back to me and playfully picked me up on his arms. I clung onto him and giggled as he placed me gently onto the other bed and crawled over me like a massive spider. I stretched beneath him as he kissed my neck.

"You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this," I then heard him mumble as he began to undress me.

And even though I was quite inebriated by his touch, I couldn't help but frown at his comment. "What?"

He leant back quickly and smiled down at me. Completely ignoring my question. "Let's drink to this, shall we?"

I frowned a little more and watched how he rolled off me and stretched his arm to grab something standing on the floor next to the bed. A bottle came into view. I propped onto my elbows and watched him conjure two goblets in which he poured the liquid. Handing me one goblet, he then bent down again to put the bottle back onto the floor. Tilting his head, he clinked his goblet against mine and we both drank. To whatever reason.

One gulp of the liquid and I knew that it didn't matter.

Sooner or later the goblets were empty and Tom was lying on top of me again, kissing me hungrily while my fingers ran through his hair. Passion grabbed me. And all there was, was his warmth. In the heat of the moment I ignored that he had almost ripped my blouse as he had pulled it off. In the end our clothes were lying messily on the floor, while we rolled around the bed, kissing each other passionately.

With my mind shutting down, I surrendered the little urge deep inside that steadily grew larger.

Maybe a change of venue could indeed help me forget what was lying behind me. Or even ahead of me.

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A/N: A new one. Yay. And some kind of... filler or... calm before the storm thingie. Well, stay tuned and you'll know what I mean. I'm working on chapter 19 that I'm carrying around with me for so long now. That idea just has to get out now!

So, in order to finish the next chapter, I'll make it short: THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR READING AND REVIEWING! You guys keep me writing! Keep up the support! Thank you!


	29. Stockholm Syndrome

**Unfinished Business**

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Chapter 19.1

_A/N: Beware of – yes, that's right. For all you sick minds out there, another warning means another snogging session! Be warned, it might be more than that! – mature content!!_

Somewhere in the Slytherin common room, somewhere beneath the castle, somewhere in a cozy bed, I was lying on my back, with my eyes closed and my heart pumping wildly against my ribcage. My breath was rapid, every inch of my skin tingling. I didn't feel the pressure of Tom's hands on my wrists or the weight of his body on mine. There was only a growing burning that numbed everything else. A pleasure that spread through my body like poison.

I could hear Tom's heavy breath as he moved faster and faster on top of me, his hands pinning me to the bed, making it impossible to move – not that I wanted to be anywhere but here. I bit my lip and inhaled sharply as his movements came to a sudden stop. An exhausted moan rang in my ears and a second later, I could feel him collapse on top of me. His head lasted on my quivering chest. His breath was hot on my skin. His hands eventually let go of my wrists.

Still feeling the sensation of his touch running through my body, I lifted my arms and gently pulled them around his shoulders, with my fingers stroking his neck tenderly. A minute in silence passed, before he moved again, acknowledging his regained strength by kissing my chest. His hands found my wrists again. He looked up and our eyes met in silent agreement. I shot him a weak smile as he rolled off me and stretched his neck to kiss me.

As he was sucking on my neck, I could feel a jerk running through his body. He then went from sucking to gnawing. I could basically feel his teeth sinking into my skin as a new wave of passion grabbed him. While I remained motionless and tried to even my breathing, he moved back on top of me, propped on his arms, pressing my wrists a little brutal into the cushions. I tilted my head and watched him move his lips from my jaw line down over my chest. His kisses were quite tenderly at first, until he rediscovered the gnawing.

"Tom," I whispered, but as soon as his name had left my lips, his head jerked up and he shot me a glare, that – at first – was just frightening, but soon turned into a smile. Trying to forget the evil look in his eyes, I merely smiled back and tried to move up to pull my arms around his shoulders. Yet he was still holding my wrists and ignored my attempt to sit up by pushing me deeper into the cushions by pressing his chest against mine. His lips found mine and I was soon silenced by a hungry kiss.

His hands eventually moved towards my hair and he grabbed it quite violently as he deepened the kiss. I stretched my neck against his movement but was yet again silenced by his lips. My now free hands then moved up his shoulders, with my nails scratching over his shoulder blades as he continued to kiss me like a hungry animal.

A sudden thought rushed through my mind like lightening. _Animal._ I gasped as I felt him move on top of me again. My fingernails sank into his skin, while I squeezed my eyes shut. The burning grew stronger again. Gritting my teeth, I clung onto Tom as he sucked on my neck. The sheets surrounding us were getting warmer and warmer. My heart was literally exploding in my chest. His breath was echoing in my ears as he pulled my head a little up by grabbing my hair brutally. Pain shot through my nerves.

"Tom," I muttered. "You're…"

"Shh!" was all he replied as he suddenly leant back and pulled me with him. Another wave of pain shot through me. His hand was still gripping my hair as he tilted my head a little to kiss my throat. My breath came rapid, as tears joined with drops of sweat. He pulled his other arm tightly around me and basically pressed me against his body, while his lips were still running along my throat. I swallowed and tried to focus on the more or less pleasant burning deep inside.

It was as he pulled my hair, that I couldn't stop the little scream of pain.

"You're hurting me!" I breathed, unable to speak any louder as he pushed me back into the cushions. His body was heavy on mine and momentarily knocked out any air left inside my lungs. He ignored my complaint and continued kissing my face. As he noticed my tears, he simply ran his thumb over my cheeks, before he focused on my lips again. While his tongue forced into my mouth, I felt his hands letting go of my hair and finding my wrists again.

His fingers hooked into mine as he pinned me to the cushions, moving on top of me in a hypnotic fashion. Pleasure drove away the pain and I eventually replied his hungry kiss. Our lips met rapidly, before his attention wandered to my right ear. And as he pressed his cheek against mine, while his fingers squeezed my hands and his body numbed every sense left of me, I opened my eyes only a little. I blamed my bustling breath, my pounding heart and the growing burning for the hallucination that made me freeze in mid-motion.

Was there really a red glowing scratch on Tom's cheek?

I squeezed my eyes shut as a wave of pleasure made me catch my breath. Glancing at Tom's cheek again, I thought I had been going crazy. The scratch was still there. And as panic wanted to rise inside, I felt how pleasure was stronger. Closing my eyes once more, I ignored the weird sensation and leant into the warm feeling the body so close to me conjured inside me. My breath was getting quicker as his movements were getting more and more abrupt.

He suddenly leant back again, pulling me along, making me press myself against him with my mouth open. My lungs seemed airless, while my heart was jumping restlessly against my ribcage. His hands found my hair, while he buried his head in the hollow of my collar bone, his breath hot on my skin. A rupture went through his body and soon met mine. I clung onto him until pleasure made us collapse.

Falling breathlessly onto my back, I still clung onto his body, before he rolled off me, his panting loudly in my ears as his head came to a halt next to mine. I remained lying with my eyes closed, trying to catch my breath again. Moments passed in which I only listened to his breath so close to me. I then rolled onto my side and faced him. His black hair fell messily into his closed eyes, his lips were parted slightly. I moved a little closer and gently cupped his face with my hands.

It was then that he opened his eyes.

An icy chill ran through my veins. My mouth dropped open and every muscle seemed to have quit its work. All I could do was stare back into those gray-blue eyes.

Suddenly his hands were holding my face. And I couldn't move. I was paralyzed by shock. By panic. By the realization of what had happened. My eyes widened in horror as I stared back into the pale face that turned into an evil grimace as he seemed to breathe in my terror. _Lestrange?_

"No." My lips moved but there was no sound emerging. I was moments away from fainting. _This wasn't happening… this wasn't… happening… no…_

"Yes, redhead," was my opponent's answer as he moved a little closer to my stupefied body, his face so awfully close it was as if the mere look of it was burning my flesh. "Surprise!" he whispered with a smile.

My shock slowly turned to distress. His hands were gripping my face, making it impossible to move. I stared back at him with my breath coming in rapid puffs; I felt as if every color had left my face. Cold slowly crept over my naked body. It seemed too much! _I couldn't just surrender like this… I…_ My mind seemed to have broken down. Waves of shock were flashing through my brains like lightning, seemingly destroying a nerve every now and then.

"You… you were…" My voice was feeble and it was hard to concentrate on the words as I was absorbed by sheer horror. "Were you… all the… here?"

Lestrange raised an eyebrow and tilted his head (I suddenly realized my hands were still cupping his face, yet I was too shocked to remove them). "Yes, dear, I was here all the time, if that's what you're wondering," he then replied, slowly making the realization and shock more and more touchable.

I swallowed and gaped at him.

"Don't tell me you didn't enjoy it?" he asked with a smirk.

Distress turned to disgust. I furrowed my eyebrows in sheer helplessness.

"Oh you did, I can tell," he went on. "And actually, I'm a little surprised myself. I had thought it wouldn't be that good. Seeing this as your punishment, you know?"

"Pu-punish- ?"

"Yes, love, did you really think I wouldn't act after what you have pulled yesterday?"

"What –"

"Oh come on," he said and squeezed my face a little as he moved even closer to me. "I told you I would punish you if you would tell on me. But you wouldn't listen. Seemingly, you wanted to be punished. You wanted to pay. Why else did you have to run to dear Tommy boy?"

New tears burned inside my eyes as he mentioned Tom. The boy I had thought to be with until just now. _This couldn't possibly happen… oh by Merlin…_

"You're a pig," I finally managed to utter, with tears running past Lestrange's fingers.

He simply frowned and grinned. "Am I?" His face moved even closer; I could already feel the tip of his nose touch mine. "I always thought it takes two to do certain things such as –"

"Shut up!" I hissed and squeezed my eyes shut. Sobs made my body shake.

"You deserved it," I then heard him reply; his breath hot on my trembling lips. "I knew from the first time I saw you that you were a little slut." His last word literally cut through my senses. Distress and disgust turned to detestation.

I opened my eyes and stared right back at him. Slowly the feeling inside my frozen fingers seemed to come back. Stretching my thumbs slightly, I narrowed my eyes and launched forwards. The grin on his face froze as my fingernails scratched along his cheeks. I used his temporary stupor to push him away from me. I managed to roll onto my other side, freeing my arms in the process. But before I could leave the bed, his hands grabbed my waist and pulled me back.

I let out a scream. Fear grew stronger again as I felt him push me into the cushions. Instead of fighting back I remained still, pressing my arms against my body, as he pinned me to the bed by sitting down on top of me. Breathing hard I stared up at him.

"You can't run," he said quietly, as his eyes flickered over me. "And you can scream as loud as you like. Nobody will hear you."

I swallowed and pressed my lips together in frustration. "Why do you want to keep me here? You had your little punishment…," I then muttered through gritted teeth as he tilted his head.

A smirk crept up on his bony face. "I think I deserve a little fun."

Panic and disgust were choking me. Shock was keeping from falling apart. "You're a pig," I repeated quietly. "If only Tom –"

"Wait right there, redhead," he interrupted me. "I was not at fault here. You followed me willingly!"

I gaped up at him. "Are you serious? You tricked me by impersonating Tom!"

"But," he went on and the smirk widened. "You didn't seem to care as you found out."

"What? Of course I cared! I –"

"Really? So you saw this?" he said and released one of my wrists to point a finger at the scratch on his cheek. "You had to see it, it was right before your eyes. But you ignored it. You knew and still –"

"NO!" I bellowed and turned my head to the side, tears dropping onto the cushions as a mixture of guilt, horror and fear twisted my insides. "No! You're lying!"

"Don't deny it! You must have seen it. You must have known!" he bellowed back, before he continued in a narrative voice. "I only used a little bit of poly juice potion, not enough to be your dearest Riddle for the whole day, but enough to bring you to follow me. It all worked out. The fight you caused worked perfectly for my little plan. You helped me actually. I had wondered how I would get some of Riddle's hair. You did it, love, you did it. You brought yourself here. It's all your fault. You're the little whore!"

"SHUT UP!" I bellowed again, my voice soaked from tears and desperation. I struggled beneath him and tried to roll on my side, but he pinned me to the bed again. As my body was shaken by sobs, I felt him lean closer until I saw his face out of the corner of my eye.

"Don't cry," he whispered into my ear and I felt his breath hot on my skin. "Don't feel bad about it. Just admit that you liked it."

"Never!" I muttered and squeezed my eyes shut. But inside something ruptured.

It was as if I was being electrocuted as his lips touched my neck. New tears spilled from beneath my eyelashes and I just shook my head. His grip on my wrists and the weight of his body on mine became a blur as I felt him kissing my jaw line. Disgust wanted to break free _and yet…_ there was something that I had thought hidden, deep, deep inside. Something that suddenly grew larger. Stronger. Still there was rebellion within.

Just as his lips were wandering over my chin to my lips, the rebellion exploded. I whirled around so suddenly that I actually managed to get away from Lestrange. I toppled off the bed in the process, but nothing else mattered. I had to get out of here! Ignoring my nudity I ran to the door and remembered in shock how Lestrange had hexed it close. Turning around with wild eyes, I saw Lestrange sitting on the bed, watching me with his expression unreadable. His calm disturbed me even more.

"I'm really sick of fighting you, redhead," he then explained while I pressed myself against the door, helplessly trying to cover my body.

I raised an eyebrow. "Guess what? Me too."

"But I can't just let you go like this," he went on and tilted his head.

"Yes, you can," I said and looked around the room for my clothes. "You don't actually think I'll tell Tom anything, do you?"

"You are not in the position to be trusted," he replied and continued watching me.

I slowly sank to the floor, stopping my search for clothes. "What do I have to do?" I asked, my voice a mere whisper as I looked up at him.

The bed squeaked slightly as he got up and walked around the bed to pick up the pile of clothes I had eyed only seconds ago. Hope was fading. He then separated his and my clothes and threw mine onto the bed while he began dressing again. He was buttoning his shirt as he looked down at me.

"What do you have to do?" he repeated my question in a mocking voice. "Speaking like a true whore."

"I'm not a whore!" I bellowed and gaped up at him.

"Really? Then what are you doing here? Naked on the floor?"

I continued gaping up at him. "You're insane," I whispered and dared to look away from him.

"Am I?" His question caught me quite off guard. He was suddenly very close to me. I wanted to back away, but he had already grabbed my chin. "If I'm really insane," he whispered, looking straight into my eyes. "Then you shouldn't mess with me."

"Why?" I simply asked, not only questioning his last remark, but questioning everything he had done.

He tilted his head. "Why?"

I merely replied his gaze.

"You're in the way."

I frowned. "What?"

"You are in the way," he repeated and let go of my chin.

"I'm in the way of what? Come on, I already know that I'm somehow crossing your plans. But what plans? What is it that you're plotting?" I got carried away. I let down my guard. But what did I have to loose, kneeling naked on the floor?

Lestrange had gotten to his feet and was collecting the clothes that were lying on the bed. My clothes. I watched him, waiting. Folding my skirt and blouse, he sat down on the bed and stared at his hands. I tilted my head.

"What makes you think I'll tell you what I'm plotting?" His voice was calm and quiet, but there was something else.

"I – I was just asking. I'm not assuming anything… anymore," I replied, pulling my knees up. Cold was gripping my body, numbing my limbs and mind, but I kept watching Lestrange. "I just want to know… why you're doing this…"

"You've asked me that before," he said and looked up slowly. Our eyes met.

"I still need answers," I whispered back.

He looked away again and got up. Walking towards the other bed, he placed my clothes neatly onto the sheets. As he spoke again, his voice seemed far away.

"I just want my piece of the cake."

* * *

A/N: Another update. Don't get used to that xD 

I have to congratulate Tabasco for finding out so quickly, that the Tom of the end of last chapter was not Tom at all. Damn, and I thought it would take you guys a little longer xD Nevermind, I'm really happy that you're still following the storyline. I have really observing readers! Thank you for that!

So, was it still a shock as you discovered the truth in this chapter? Tell me. I'm really keen on knowing. I had chills as I was writing this... did you?

Anyway, the next part is a work in progress so maybe it'll be online tonight or the following days. As I've been ill for the last week and starting university today again, I don't know if I'll have that much time, but I try my best. I promise! You don't have to hang on this last cliffhanger for too long.

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR READING AND REVIEWING!:)


	30. How does it feel to be the victim?

**Unfinished Business**

* * *

"_I just want my piece of the cake."_

**Chapter 19.2**

I gaped up at Lestrange. _His piece of the cake? What cake? Did he mean –_ A memory popped into my head. The edge of the Forbidden Forest. Tom playing the boss. His dopey friends. Lestrange and Tom's argument. The postponing of a plan. _What plan?_ Lestrange's wish to be involved. _In what?_

I blinked and continued staring at the pale boy standing in front of me. Holding a blanket. "Here," he said and threw the blanket at me. I caught it with a perplexed gaze, before I wrapped it around my numb body. Without taking my eyes off him, I got to my feet.

"I can't tell you more," he answered my questioning gaze. "I've already told you enough."

"You haven't told me anything," I protested and moved away from him as he moved to the door.

"Oh, I have," he simply said and got out his wand.

"What are you doing now?"

Pointing the wand at the door, he turned his head towards me. "I'm leaving."

"And… what about me?"

"You're staying," he said, before unlocking the door with a click.

I gaped at him. _No way!_ Just as I wanted to move to the door, he pointed the wand at me. I gasped in shock and drew back slowly.

"You're staying," he repeated and opened the door. "You're part of the plan now."

Before I could even process this new information, he had lowered his wand and stepped through the door. Closing it behind him. As I heard the clicking of the lock, I rushed forwards and threw myself against the door.

"You can't just leave me here!" I yelled through the cold wood, banging my fists against it.

"I can," I heard the distant reply. "And I will!"

"Tom will find out!"

"That's what I hope for!"

His last words remained hanging in the air, until silence pressed down onto my ears. I suddenly realized what had happened. And what was about to happen. Leaning against the wooden door of my prison, I felt it running through my veins. Being all alone again, I couldn't keep the tears away anymore. Cold sweat gripped me, my knees began to shake and I eventually ended up crouching on the floor, fate resting heavy on my shoulders.

Hot tears spread mercilessly from under my eyelashes, winding their way over my pale cheeks. Uncontrollable sobs shook my body and it seemed like the end of the world. I couldn't think, I couldn't progress, I couldn't remember. I was just lying, coiled up, on the floor, surrounded by my misery. My mind grew number by the second and there was nothing left inside but cold fear, stinging regret, soaring guilt and terrified confusion.

_What have I done?_

Slowly the realization came back through the fog of despair. I rested my head helplessly onto the floor and stared aimlessly ahead, past the two beds into the vastness and eeriness of the room. My body seemed to freeze as my mind began working again.

_How am I supposed to get out of this?_ Not only out of this room, out of this situation. This misery. This rotten hole. _How could I have ended up here?_ Why? Why me? _Oh the why is back._ Or was it never gone? _Should I have seen it coming?_ It was too perfect. Too easy. Tom was perfect. But I had ignored the rest. _I haven't paid enough attention to the details. _The details. The others. Like him. The plan had always been there. But I had ignored it. I was selfish… _I am selfish…_

_Am I a whore after all?_

New tears ran across my cheeks and dropped soundlessly onto the floor.

_Look at what I've done so far._ I came here, I met Tom, I ended up in his bed. It all happened so quickly. Why have I been so stupid? Why did I fall for him? Why am I so easily influenced? _And why the hell didn't I protest as I knew it was Lestrange?_

Another wave of sobs shook my body.

Oh by Merlin. _Yes, I knew._ I had seen the hints. I had been wondering about his voice and his eyes. I had seen him acting so unlike Tom. But all that had mattered for me were his looks and the passion he had thrown at me. _I am so selfish…_ Disgust rose inside and crawled heavily up my throat until I could taste it inside my mouth. Horrible disgust. Against Lestrange, against this room, against myself. Mostly against myself!

I pressed my eyes shut and tried to swallow. _Swallow… No…_ I should not swallow, I should not repress! I should let it out! I have to deal with what I have done! I have to stand up for it! I have to fight! _But… how? _Tears kept spilling from my eyes as I slowly rolled onto my back, the only movement I felt capable of. A sigh mixed with another row of sobs emerged from my lips as I opened my eyes and stared at the dark ceiling.

_Lying around and crying your eyes out won't help! Get up and get a grip on yourself!_ I sighed again deeply and tried to sit up, with the voice of reason repeating its mantra inside my head. Wrapping the blanket tighter around my body, I got to my feet and numbly walked towards one of the beds. Cold was gripping my body so tightly that it actually hurt to move. I then sat down on the edge of the bed, trying to calm myself. My breath eventually stabilized and all there was were the wet traces of tears on my face.

I took a deep breath and grabbed my clothes that were lying nearby. Biting my lip, I then began dressing. With my hands shaking horribly, I tried to button my blouse until I realized that several buttons were missing. Suddenly, a wave of memories flashed through my brain like lightning, physically hurting lightning. I turned my head away and closed my eyes, trying to repress what was near to erupt. Breathing deeply, furrowing my forehead, I tried to fight the urge to vomit.

Disgust rested on my tongue, making my head spin. I gasped as my throat seemed to be squeezed by invisible forces. Images flew through my brain. _Warm hands on skin. Bodies pressed together. A passionate kiss. A scratch. More kisses. Deep emotions. Passion. A scratch. Warmth. Pressure. Sweat. Relief followed by the ultimate horror. _Another gasp escaped my throat, making me tumble off the edge of the bed. Holding my neck, my heart racing inside my chest, I felt as if I would burst from the amount of memories erupting inside.

As I was on the verge of fainting, the images grew darker and foggier. Over and over I heard my own voice inside my head. Next to other voices. And images. _I should have known! You're part of the plan now! _Hands grabbing my hair forcefully. _You're hurting me! I should have known… I just want my piece of the cake!_Sadness in cold eyes. _I should have fought him! I won't let you scare me._ The weight of a body on mine. Lips on mine. _I liked it…_

A last wave of pain rushed through my body before I collapsed on the floor.

* * *

"Hey!" A rude voice echoed through my empty brain. 

I lazily opened my eyes and found myself still lying next to the bed. Suddenly shoes took over my vision. _Where… ? Oh… ! _I blinked several times and tried to sit up, feeling my head heavy on my shoulders. Taking a deep breath, I then leant against the bed and looked up. _I'm still in the middle of a nightmare._

"Come to let me go?" I mumbled as I watched Lestrange standing over me.

"Don't be silly, redhead," he replied and turned around towards the door.

"What then? Spy on me? Check whether I'm still kicking?" My headache quickly turned disgust into determination and rage. _At least there was an use in having a thumping skull!_

But Lestrange chose to ignore me. He turned away from me and sat down on the opposite bed.

"What's wrong with you?" I then couldn't keep it any longer and just shouted at him.

He raised his head lazily. Our eyes met. Another rush went through my veins. Rage was faltering. I quickly looked away and concentrated on getting to my feet without my head falling off. As I managed to sit down on the bed, I dared to look at him again. He had lowered his head and was staring at the floor. _What in the name of Merlin is going here?!_

"What's wrong?" I asked again, my voice a notch away from sounding sympathetic. _Bad!_

"Nothing," he then said and looked up, his bony face stern.

"Doesn't look like nothing," I commented. "What is it? Already reconsidering your big plan?"

"As a matter of fact," he replied and got up from the bed, slowly walking towards me. "I am."

I frowned and slowly moved along the edge away from him. "So?"

"What do _you_ think?"

I eventually reached the back of the bed and came to a sudden stop. He was slowly moving closer. "What I think?" I asked and looked around carefully for a way out. "I think you… you came to the conclusion that… what you have done was wrong and that you now decide to let me go and never harm me… ever again. How… how far away am I?"

"Very far," he simply said and was suddenly over me, his hands grabbing my shoulders in order to pin me to the back of the bed. I tried to struggle out of his grip but it wouldn't do. _You're not trying hard enough!_ I am, he's just stronger! _No, you actually want him to –_ NO! A new wave of strength made me bent forwards, pushing him away in the process. Without thinking again, I jumped off the bed and ran to the door, throwing myself against it. But it was locked. _Of course it is locked!_

I turned around quickly, noticing that Lestrange was still sitting on the bed, watching me with a smirk on his lips. Rage was boiling inside of me.

"What's the matter with you?" I bellowed, clenching my fists. "Why are you always doing this? Isn't it enough punishment already that I have to be here? Do you also have to abuse me over and over again?" My voice had reached a volume that literally hurt my throat.

Lestrange tilted his head, before he narrowed his eyes and shouted back. "I never abused you! Stop saying that!" He got to his feet and used the height difference to make me feel small again. "I never even touched you without your permission!"

"Are you insane or simply stupid?" I yelled, pressing myself against the door. "Where have you been these last times then? What happened in that corridor? And after you - … and right now? What was that? Trying to scare me? Well, congratulations, you succeeded!" I was shaking from head to toe as I faced him.

He stopped several feet away from me, watching me. "Alright, I may have touched you before. I'm only human, you know?" he said quietly, before he took a few steps forwards. "But," he began and kept on walking. "I know that you don't mind!"

I gaped at him. "NO! I do mind! I mind a lot! I don't want you to touch me! Every again! You're such a pig! Do you hear me? Let me go, leave me alone! I –"

Before I could react, he had grabbed my arms and turned me around, pressing me chest-first against the door, both arms pinning me to the wood. I turned my head and panted in shock as I then saw his face out of the corner of my eye. His lips were almost brushing against my ear, while his hands slowly stroke along my waist downwards. A chill ran across my spine.

"Now tell me you don't like this," he whispered, his deep voice echoing through my skull.

"I don't like this," I replied as good as I could with my face pressed against the door.

"Really?" His hands were massaging my hips.

"YES!" Tears spilled from my eyes as desperation grew. "I DON'T LIKE THIS!"

"I DON'T BELIEVE YOU!" he yelled back, the volume of his voice deafening me for a few seconds. "I can see it in your eyes!"

I pressed my eyes shut immediately. Surrendering. Every ounce of strength forsook me, with darkness came fear and panic and defeat. I felt like falling. Suddenly I saw Tom's dark eyes in front of me. And I felt warmth. With my eyes still closed, I felt how I was being turned and how my shoulder blades were pressed against the wooden door. I felt a warm breath on my skin and hands on my arms. Tom's face was looming behind my lids. _Don't let him scare you…_

I then opened my eyes and stared directly into Lestrange's. Fear was gone. Without thinking I raised my arms and pulled them around his neck. My movement surprised him enough to use it against him. My mind went blank while I leant forwards. My eyes bored into his and the next second I was doing what I had thought impossible. My lips closed around his, my eyelids shut and I sank into the kiss, staring at the mental image of Tom Riddle.

Just as Lestrange responded, putting his hands on my waist, determination struck. My eyes flew open and it was as if someone turned down the volume. My fingernails scratched over Lestrange's neck, as my teeth sank into his lower lip. I used his wincing to push him off me. As if in slow-motion he fell to the ground and landed on his behind, looking dumbstruck. I took a step forwards and began, without thinking, to kick him. Rage was growing with every second. It seemed to be pulsating behind my eyes.

Lestrange stared up at me and tried to cover himself from the blows of my feet._Where's the tough guy now, huh?_ As he didn't seem to defend himself, I continued kicking and beating, before my voice joined the sound of flesh against flesh and bone against bone.

"You will never touch me again," I yelled, emphasizing every word with an individual blow. "You will not plot against Tom! You will not blackmail him! And you will not keep me here!"

He eventually began to crawl away from me, until his back met the end of one of the beds, where I grabbed him by the front of his robes and continued hitting his face. I didn't even feel the pain that every blow caused in my own hand. I didn't see Lestrange's shocked and more and more swollen face. There was nothing but pure rage. I had never felt that violent in my entire life. Yet I was not stopped, neither by Lestrange nor by the voice of reason who seemed to agree with me.

I justified my wrath by all those things that had added up these last days, all those things Lestrange had caused. More blows hit his face, there was blood running from his nose and the stinging in my knuckles grew stronger. My feet kicked him, my fists beat him, my fingernails scratched him. It was a matter of seconds yet it felt as if it was the long-wished-for revenge that lasted forever. _It felt good._

A last blow hit him straight in the face, before I leant back, panting heavily. My hand closed around his robes again, whilst the other rummaged through his pockets. In my blind rage I found what I had been looking for. His wand, that felt oddly light in my thumbing hand. I shot a last glance at Lestrange who watched me equally breathless out of one black eye.

I narrowed my eyes and pointed the wand at him while kneeling down in front of him. Tilting my head, I then whispered: "How does it feel to be the victim?" He simply stared at me, blood dripping from his lips. I got to my feet and turned away from him, quickly walking towards the door. The pain inside my hands grew stronger but all that I focused on was what loomed behind the closed door. Freedom.

I hexed the door open and took a deep breath. Clutching the wand inside my fist, I turned back to Lestrange who was still crouching beside the bed, watching me with his mouth open and his chest heaving. As I turned to leave, something crept onto my face. A smirk.

The smirk of supremacy.

* * *

_A/N: Alright. Now you might wonder... wow, Ginny's particularly odd today. Well, yeah, she is, she might even be a bit out of character. BUT look at the reason(s) why. Try to understand. Look inside her. I hope I could present those reasons to you. And I hope you don't think it's a little too extreme what happened in this chapter. Tell me, I'd like to know!_

_Anyways, a new chapter, finally. I drew a Tom-portrait today (the link can be found on my profile) and felt the need to continue on the latest chapter. And I did. It's now almost 1 am and I'm tired as hell and my fingers are cold. But still, here I am, writing the last lines only for you!_

_Because I thank you! For every review, every wink of support! Thanks everyone! Remember; you guys keep me writing! This is your story as well!:) _


	31. The Weakness Within

**Unfinished Business**

* * *

**Chapter 20**

As I rushed through the corridor towards the Slytherin common room, I suddenly realized what I had done. _You've beat the crap out of Lestrange!_ I did… _Don't blame yourself, it was right. He deserved it! _Did he? _Of course he did! Look at what he'd done to you!_ But – _Hey! Where's the feeling of power, huh? Wasn't it great to have the upper hand?_ Actually, I don't know… It felt nice, sure, but… I don't think I'm the type of person who wants to have the upper hand. I mean… _Yeah, you're confused. Again._ I mean I like to stand up from time to time, but constantly? No, I don't want to suppress people in order to get what I want. I'm not like –

_Tom?_

You think so? _Of course, he originated the smirk of supremacy!_ But he's changed! _Has he?_

I hurried along the corridor, the walls a mere blur as I rushed by, my head spinning from the agitated conversation with the voice of reason. He's never treated me as if I was below him… _Oh hasn't he? Think again. Remember when you first met him!_ That was different, I would have been like that as well if there would be this ghost girl stalking me. _So maybe he's changed. A little at least. But he's still treating his so-called friends like –_ Minions. _Yes._ That doesn't mean anything.

Besides, some of them deserve to be treated like dirt!

I suddenly was aware of how badly my hands were shaking. I looked down at them while hurrying along the corridor and finally reaching the vast common room. My knuckles were smeared with blood, every inch of flesh and bone seemed to be pulsating. The wand inside my right hand trembled. I furrowed my forehead in order to repress any more thoughts of regret and even throw the wand away. It fell clattering to the floor as I hurried on.

_I'm leaving it behind. I'm leaving it all._ It was a gift of me to ignore the past and live as if nothing happened. I usually didn't bear a grudge against anyone. Maybe there might be someone now. But still… it wouldn't help to relive what had happened. I had to step forwards. Not backwards. And so I stepped out of the common room and broke into a run as I reached the corridor leading up to the ground floor.

I was panting heavily as I finally came to a halt in the Entrance Hall. I suddenly realized that the day was already ending. _How long have I been in the Slytherin common room? _The sun was setting in the west, filling the Hall with reddish light that lingered menacingly on the high walls. I took a deep breath and walked slowly towards the Great Hall which lay empty in front of me. No more flooding… _I wonder if there has ever been one. _Maybe that had been part of Lestrange's plan as well.

His plan. _You're part of the plan now._ It has been his plan to flood the Great Hall. To order Tom away from me. To keep Malfoy on position on the first floor. To capture me. To… _But what exactly did he want from me?_ Was he that much of a pig to just get me into bed? Ignoring the fact that he succeeded, why would he do that? Was it to make Tom jealous (what he had always been talking about) or was there more? No, I doubted that there would be more. If so, then he had weird ways of showing me his affection.

No, I think it's all about the plan. The plan to overthrow Tom. Jealousy was driving him. _I just want a piece of the cake._ Jealousy was making him pull me into the plan. _Because you're too involved with Tom. It's your own fault!_ Shut up, that's not the point! _What is the point then?_ The point is that I'm in the way. _That's what I've been saying… _Ignoring you now. I wonder what would have happened if I wouldn't have woken up in this time.

Apparently Lestrange had this plan long before I got here. But seemingly, according to the future, he didn't succeed. But he nevertheless tried to overthrow Tom. I guess. But… in the future… Tom has reached his goal of controlling the world, and Lestrange? Well, at least he reproduced; seeing that his children would soon become some of the most terrifying Death Eaters history would ever know. _But how did he get there?_

I guess he would let jealousy be jealousy and somehow cooperate with Tom. Accepting that he would never be first or best. Looking at Lestrange now, it seemed impossible for him to ever be like that. Being evil himself, he looked more like the perfect nemesis of Tom… rather than his biggest supporter. How could he change so incredibly towards the end? What had happened? What will happen? What would have happened if I hadn't interfered?

Am I changing the course of the future? _Well, of course, you stepped into too many lives by now. You surely had an impression._ But how am I changing the future? Am I keeping Tom from becoming the Dark Lord – or am I turning Lestrange into something equally evil? I can't possibly change both. If I change one, I'll inevitably change the other – for good or bad. And it seems as if – whatever I'll do – nothing good will come out of it.

And there I was, surrounding by a dying sun, squeezed to the ground by an enormous dilemma. Yet I couldn't move. I couldn't run. I stood motionless in the middle of the Entrance Hall, laden with a burden I couldn't cope with anymore. I came here for a reason, I had to act… didn't I? _It's too late anyway! Now it's up to you; who to change and what to do, back away, continue, change the destination. You have to decide._

I hate that! But what else could I possibly do? Looking around the deserted Entrance Hall, I felt the cold that the setting sun brought upon the castle gripping me forcefully. Lowering my gaze, I noticed my unbuttoned blouse. _Praise the fact that I'm all alone here…_ Trying to use the last remaining buttons to keep the fabric together, I then turned towards the stairs, my head still spinning from too many thoughts.

Suddenly everything went quiet. Something inside ruptured as I saw Tom looking down at me from the top of the marble staircase. It was only a second of eye contact, but it felt like forever. Everything, everything suppressed broke free again and I didn't even notice the tears spilling from my eyes as I began running up the stairs. I also didn't notice that Tom hurried towards me, a worried expression on his pale face. For a moment he wasn't Tom Riddle, but the personification of hope. Of safety.

While my insides exploded from an unbelievable amount of grief that suddenly washed over me, I finally met Tom in the middle of the staircase and simply jumped at him, pulling my arms around his neck until I clung onto him in a very desperate way. I didn't care about anything but his soothing warmth, his arms that held me, without question, tightly pressed against him. And I simply let go. Tears streaming down my cheeks, sobs making my body shake viciously, it didn't matter.

_I had made my decision._

Embracing Tom as if the world would end any second, I began to find my strength again. Sobbing repeatedly, I tried to calm myself down by listening closely to his heartbeat, by feeling his breath on my neck and his arms around me. There was no dilemma. There was only Tom. I took a deep breath and loosened my arms around his neck. Biting my lip, I then looked up and found him watching me with an expression full of concern.

"I'm sorry," he then whispered and pulled me even closer.

I tilted my head and placed my hands firmly on his chest. "What?"

"I'm sorry I left you," he continued, his hands cupping my face, his eyes laden with a sadness that was intoxicating. "I should have known."

His words made tears spill from my eyelashes whilst a lump formed inside my throat. Closing my eyes, I pressed my face against his collarbone, my arms embracing him tightly, sobs shaking me uncontrollably. Tom's arms eventually coiled around my waist, his warmth calming me down slowly.

"Are you alright?" he asked quietly, his voice so soothing in my ear.

I sighed deeply and leant back a little to look at him. Before I nodded. "I'm fine now," I muttered almost inaudible, looking into his eyes. "It doesn't matter what had happened."

His eyes wandered over my face. He then loosened his grip and grabbed my wrists gently, taking my hands into his. It was then that his eyes flew down onto m bleeding knuckles. He immediately looked back at me. "Tell me what happened!"

Even though it felt like a demand, I replied his gaze and opened my mouth. The truth came naturally. My voice remained even as long as I stared into his eyes. And I told him everything. About what Lestrange had done to lure me into the Slytherin common room, about my confusion and the horror as I discovered what I had done, about my fears and about my rage, about Lestrange's plan and about how I had let him pay for what he had done. I left out the part about my doubts and the dilemma this situation had left me in. But I told Tom everything else and it felt right to do so.

As I had finished, I found myself sitting on the stairs, my eyes locking with Tom's, our hands intertwined. His face grew paler with the second. I swallowed and waited for his response. I didn't know what to expect. _Surely he was mad. Or worse._ But Tom remained silent, while his thumbs caressed my hands, the cold of his skin soothing on my wounds. He then lowered his gaze and draw a deep breath.

"Tom," I whispered as he still wouldn't say anything. "Say something…"

He looked up finally and I saw a glimpse of rage inside his eyes. _Yes, he was mad._ But as soon as his dark eyes met mine, the rage faltered and sympathy came into view. He moved closer to me and leant forwards to kiss my cheek. His voice was very quiet as he spoke.

"I've told you this before, but I can only repeat myself. You're the bravest girl I've ever met."

I couldn't help but smile at his words.

"And even though you seem to handle it… unusually well, I never wanted you to become a part of this little… war I'm having with Lestrange. I'm sorry, Ginny," he went on and lowered his gaze again, his eyes flickering over my hurting knuckles.

"It's not your fault, Tom," I then replied, freeing one of my hands to gently stroke his cheek. His eyes met mine again. "I chose to stick to you. I got myself involved in this."

He opened his mouth to speak, but I went on.

"And even if I don't seem to have any other choice than to stick to you because this isn't my time and you're the only one caring about me, I still feel free to leave at any time. I could. But I won't. This is too… important…"

The last words came out unnaturally quiet. Feeling the lump growing inside my throat, I looked down at his hands holding mine carefully. Tears were running soundlessly over my cheeks. The meaning of the last words that had left my mouth was hanging heavily over me, mocking me. _Oh it was too important. The world's peaceful existence depended on this! _And moreover, _oh how selfish of me to put anything above the fate of the world_, Tom was the one being important. He was safety. No matter how his future might look.

"If someone is at fault here," I continued, looking up again. "It's Lestrange."

I watched Tom's jaw clenching as he nodded. "He'll pay for that. I've promised you that before!"

"Don't promise me that," I replied and tilted my head. "You shouldn't fight him anymore."

A frown crept onto his handsome features. "And put up with what he had done? Ginny, no, I can't do that!"

"But that's exactly what he wants! He wants to provoke you!"

"Well, he succeeded, didn't he?"

I swallowed hard at that.

"I have to do something against that. We have to stand up to this!"

And while Tom seemed to think about a revenge plan, I merely looked at him, a smile playing with the corners of my mouth. He said _we_. Nothing mattered more. _That's so kindergarten! _Shut up and stop ruining the moment! The smile widened and I simply flung my arms around Tom's neck again, causing him to look quite surprised. Kissing him quickly, I leant against him.

"We'll stand up to this," I repeated quietly and breathed against his neck. "We'll do."

He replied the gesture, before he eventually pulled me back onto my feet. Grabbing my hand gently, his eyes flying over my face, he then pulled me after him up the stairs. I hurried to keep up with him. As we reached the top of the stairs, my arm was tightly wrapped around his waist. He was just turning towards me – and I could tell by the concentrated look on his face that his mind was working rapidly on how he wanted to stand up to Lestrange – as I positioned myself in front of him, stretching my neck to look at him.

"Tom?" I asked quietly.

"Hmm?" was his unfocused reply.

"Could we forget about our plans for a bit?"

He blinked, his attention increasing visibly.

"I'm really tired and like to keep my mind away from… well, you know… for a moment. Let's… um, think about further actions later, okay?"

"Of course, I'm sorry," he said, sounding rather tired himself. "I shouldn't focus on Lestrange when I really should focus on… you. I guess I'm not being sympathetic enough."

I smiled at him genuinely. "Don't worry, you're doing great," I said and emphasized my words by leaning up to kiss him gently. His hands gripped my waist as he replied the kiss with the sort of passion I would expect from him. He then let go of me and tilted his head.

"You do look tired."

With that being said, we walked towards the portrait of the wizard with the pointy hat and entered the serene safety of the Head common room. We left its darkness behind and entered Tom's room. It was as my eyes fell onto the four-poster bed draped in green and silver, that I began to shake uncontrollably. My breath was stuck inside my throat as I even tumbled backwards against the closed door. The room suddenly felt awfully small, narrowing by the beating of my thumping heart.

"Ginny?" Tom's voice seemed far away.

I tried to blink and focus, but something inside had snapped. I thought I could be Tom's little brave girl, but I knew I wasn't. _This was just a mask_… a mask of courage hiding awful things that had kept building up inside of me all my life. _Was this the moment I would finally lose it? _My vision blurred as I lowered my gaze and felt my knees giving in. But I didn't sink to the floor as two hands gently grabbed my shoulders and held me on my feet.

I then realized how close Tom was. Slowly, very slowly, I felt my fear faltering. A ruptured wave of shock rushed through my body as his hands cupped my face, his eyes angling for my attention. I blinked again repeatedly until I could focus on the face so close to mine._Tom is not the enemy! Tom is not the enemy!_ I repeated the words like a mantra, before I felt my breath and heartbeat relaxing bit by bit. Breathing deeply I then leant against him, feeling incredibly exhausted.

He pulled his arms around me and guided me towards the bed where he sat me down on the edge and knelt down in front of me, holding my hands as he did so. I swallowed and, still trembling, looked down into his eyes.

"Are you sure you're alright?"

Even though the voice of reason and probably every other mind in the universe would agree with my behavior, I just wanted to kick myself for being so tremendously weak. _I don't want to be weak!_ But every nerve, every cell of my body couldn't deny the weakness within. _Just let it go… _But – _No. Let it go!_ That was when the tears came. I didn't know how, but as my body was shaken by sobs, Tom gently lay me down on the bed and pulled the bed-sheets tightly around me.

His cold fingers felt my forehead, before his thumb wiped away the tears. All the time I was watching him, still trying to fight the weakness. His pale face and his calm dark eyes had a rather soothing effect on me and I felt how weakness changed places with fatigue. His hand slowly quit caressing my skin and I saw him move, getting to his feet. Alert kept me awake.

"Where are you going?" I mumbled as he turned towards the door.

"I'll be right back," he replied and was about to leave.

"Please don't leave me," I then whispered, finally accepting the weakness inside.

He turned back to me and quickly leant over to kiss me. "I'll be right back, I promise," he said with a smile.

I tried to reply his smile as honest as possible. He then turned away and left through the door. The sudden silence was deafening. Then I heard water being turned on and a moment later, Tom returned, holding a wet washrag, that he soon after placed on my forehead. Its cold felt comforting. I closed my eyes and snuggled into the bed-sheets.

"Do you mind if I join you?" His question felt weird, even though I had to give him credit for asking anyway. He turned more and more sympathetic by the second.

I opened my eyes and looked around – as he had moved towards the other side of the bed. Trying not to lose the washrag on my forehead, I shook my head carefully. He then climbed into bed, unbuttoning his shirt as he did so. I closed my eyes again and concentrated on my breathing. I felt him move underneath the sheets beside me. I waited until he had settled before I opened my eyes again. He was lying on his side, facing me, concern still flickering over his features.

"Please don't look so concerned," I muttered with an attempt of a grin.

His lips curled slightly. "But I am."

"Don't be," I repeated. "I'm trying to be brave here!"

He grinned at that. "You've been brave enough for the day," he then said and propped onto one elbow, watching me. "Try to sleep now."

I tried to nod and almost lost the washrag that simply slipped down onto my face. I felt Tom lean over me, until he grabbed the washrag and pushed it back up, his hand lingering a while on my forehead, whilst his face was so close to mine I could feel his breath on my lips. I had to slap myself mentally for not giving it a rest. And I needed to rest. Take a break. Relax. Regain my strength. In order to do that I had to close my eyes what I did just as Tom leant in to close his lips around mine.

I replied the kiss kind of desperate. Yet I couldn't thank Tom enough for pulling back after a while and lying back down on his side of the bed. I turned my head to him and smiled. His eyes lingered on my face for another moment, before the washrag slipped again. He smirked at that and pushed it lightly back up. Stroking my cheek for one last time, he then whispered: "Tomorrow will be a better day."

I grabbed his hand and nodded carefully. _I really hope he's right._

With that I drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

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_**A/N: **Nothing much to say. Just: THANK YOU FOR YOUR TRULY INSPIRING REVIEWS! I can't thank you enough for your support! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Tell me more of your thoughts. I might need more inspiration soon!:) _


	32. You’re doing weird things to my mind!

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**Unfinished Business**

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**Chapter 21.1**

I might have drifted off into a dreamless sleep, but the night lasted longer than just one period of dreams. As fatigue had washed over me, uniting the darkness around and within, I had found myself hidden in a warm embrace, with safety nearby. It had been easy to fall asleep. I had no idea that it wasn't as easy as to wake up.

It was as if I was floating between dream and reality. Dream being a nightmare I was sure to have after the intense moments of the last days… or hours. I wasn't even surprised as the darkness split and more and more surreal things sank into my sleeping mind. I wasn't surprised about the endless corridor that kept appearing or the voices, yelling threateningly. I got used to the shadows haunting my every move. I even expected Lestrange to come back to finally punish me.

But he wouldn't come.

Instead something weird happened while my eyeballs rolled around under my closed eyelids. Light cut through the dark, scaring away the shadows. Yet it was blindingly and did not create a warm feeling inside. I myself felt like a shadow running away from the brightness. And I ran. Through a corridor. Into darkness, with the light chasing me mercilessly. Suddenly there was a voice. Loud in the brightness behind me.

"Turn around and face me!"

But I wouldn't. The voice sounded hollow and cold and I didn't dare to stop and take a look at its owner. I kept running and the voice called out to me again. Over and over. And then I met the end. The end of the corridor. A large portrait of a snake. The voice echoed through my skull.

"Face me!"

There was an urge swinging along the two words, an urge that was desperate enough for me to finally turn around. With my heart pumping wildly inside my chest, I moved away from the portrait and shielded my hands against the blinding light. I blinked several times until I saw it. The figure standing in the light, a mere shadow against the white background.

"It's alright now," the voice told me, more and more soothing.

I tilted my head and tried to make out any distinguishable features but the figure remained a shadow, black from head to toe against the light surrounding it. It was then that I saw a hand emerging from the shadow, reaching out to me. Not in a grabbing manner, but friendly, palm up, waiting patiently.

"Take it, it's alright."

I hesitated. Just as I made up my mind and began to move my own hand up, the light got brighter, making me actually jump back against the portrait. The shadow in front of me was swallowed by the brightness; and while I tried to cover my eyes against the light, I felt something slithering around my feet. A hiss rang to my ears, but before I could look down, I was absorbed into the light until there was nothing left.

I woke up instantly. It came quite naturally after all. I just opened my eyes and stared into darkness, soothing after the blindingly bright dream. My heartbeat quickly calmed down, as did my breath. I sighed deeply. I didn't know what to think of what my mind had just created. So, no more darkness? Someone willing to lead me away from evil, maybe? And this snake? What – hmm. Light good, darkness plus snake bad? Was it that easy to interpret?

_No. Nothing is as easy as it seems, always remember that!_

Sure if it comes from you! I rolled onto my side and faced a sleeping Tom Riddle, his pale face slightly glowing in the dark. I continued watching him until I felt myself blush. I didn't know where the heat was coming from, but I praised the darkness for not displaying my sudden wave of affection towards the sleeping boy next to me._Affection_. Oh no, did I name what I had felt for quite some time now? Was it affection or was it even something more? Whatever it was, it still felt odd to put a name to it.

Why did it feel odd when the feeling itself began to feel more and more right?

I looked away finally, snuggling into the pillow. But my eyes wouldn't stay away long. Soon they were wandering over his distinctive features; the pale and even skin, the thick black hair falling into his forehead, the closed eyes whose gazes (when open) had burned themselves into my brains, and the lips, parted slightly, whose gentle touch I would have never expected.

Totally absorbed into looking at him and remembering all those things that had happened since I had woken up in his time, I absentmindedly reached out and gently stroke his cheek with the back of my index finger. I didn't even notice him moving under my touch. I let myself carry away enough to actually lean forwards and lightly brush my lips over his. And I wasn't even shocked as he opened his eyes.

I continued hovering inches away from him, his breath warm on my lips as he spoke, his voice laden with fatigue: "Is it morning already?"

"No," I whispered and locked eyes with him. "I'm sorry for waking you."

"Don't be," he replied and I could see by his eyes that he was smiling. "It's a nice way of being woken up."

I smirked at that and snuggled into the sheets, my face remaining close to his. I felt his hands searching for mine and soon our fingers were hooked into each other.

"How did you sleep?" he then asked.

I considered my reply for a moment. Actually, I felt better. Much better. The horror of the last day(s) was gone. I felt safe again. And reassured. "Lovely," I said with a smile.

"Lovely?" he repeated, a grin creeping up his features.

"As cheesy as this may sound, yes," I replied, chuckling.

"I'm glad," he whispered back and I felt him squeezing my hand, sending tiny waves of pain through my nerves as he accidentally touched my still hurting knuckles. He seemed to have noticed my wincing and leant back to examine my hands. "We really should be doing something about that," he muttered, more to himself, but I nodded nevertheless.

Yet as he began to move, indicating that he wanted to get up, I grabbed his hands and held him back.

"No, it's okay, they're not hurting that much. It can wait, really!"

He watched me closely, concern flashing through his dark pupils.

"Believe me, I'm fine," I insisted and smiled brightly.

"If you say so," he replied and relaxed again.

"I do," I said with a smirk. "And you'd better start believing me."

His hands found my face and a second later his lips brushed over mine. I deepened the kiss by moving closer to him, yet as he started to lean over me, I gently kept him at a distance. He kissed the corners of my mouth and leant back to watch me. A thought had made me stop.

"May I ask you something, Tom?" I asked as he tilted his head, seemingly awaiting a question or explanation.

"Sure," he replied and lay back down on his side, facing me patiently.

"Please tell me that we have more than just… these bed stories."

"That's not a question," he said with a tiny smile. "That's a request."

I shot him a playful glare. "Tom…"

"I'm sorry. So, what exactly are you saying?"

"I'm saying… do you think we would have the same kind of… relationship if we wouldn't –" I closed my eyes for a second. "Sleep together?"

His eyes examined my face.

"Would you still like me if I didn't sleep with you?"

There, I offered him my doubts on a golden plate. Now it was up to him to either push me away or welcome me in his arms. But knowing Tom, he would probably do something completely different anyways.

"Do you really think that's the reason I like you?"

"Well, I guess you liked all your other girls because of that."

"Ginny," he began, his voice mixed with something I would either call irritation, disappointment or concern. Quite selfishly, I preferred the middle one. "I've told you before that you are different. You're much different from those… other girls. You're something else."

Coming from Tom, this seemed to be a high compliment. But I wouldn't settle for that answer!

"So if I stopped… being so nice, would you still like me?"

"Why would you do that?" he asked with a flicker inside his eyes.

"Do what?"

"Being nice to me." There was a tone to his voice that made me frown.

"Tom, I wouldn't! It was just a hypothetical question."

"Of course I wouldn't stop liking you! Actually, I can't believe that you think of me like that!"

"I'm not. I was just wondering, you know? I didn't mean to hurt you with that…"

He closed his eyes for a moment or two, before he looked back into mine. Another moment passed, before he lowered his gaze yet again, with his jaw visibly clenching. He seemed to have an inner conflict by the look of how his forehead furrowed. I watched him a couple of seconds before I raised my hands to cup his face gently.

"Tom, what is it?" I whispered.

His eyes met mine. There was turmoil within. "You're doing weird things to my mind, you know that?"

His statement actually made me smile. "What things?" Playing along a little might help.

"You know what I mean," he tried to struggle his way out of an answer.

"Maybe, but I'd like to be sure," I replied with a grin.

"You're mocking me!" A smile played around his eyes.

"Only a little."

"Don't do that, I'm confused enough as it is."

At that I leant forwards to kiss him quickly. "Now that's a new facet of you! Tom Riddle being confused," I whispered as I stroked his cheeks with my thumbs.

"Don't tell anyone," he replied with a smirk, while his hands found my face. "Might ruin my reputation!"

I laughed. "So you actually like me, huh?"

He raised an eyebrow at that. "I think I said so several times now."

"Really?"

"Ginny, I think during all that time that we've been together –"

"You mean those _few_ _days_?"

"It feels like more."

"It does," I then agreed, remembering.

"Anyhow, during all that time I… I really got to know you, more than I've ever known any girl before. And even though your whole… _existence_ in this… time is rather complicated, _you_ are not that complicated."

"Well, that speaks against me, doesn't it?" I replied with a raised eyebrow.

"No, that's not what I mean. I mean… it's easy to be with you."

I watched Tom closely, my hand slowly leaving his face. "You're being rather cryptic today."

"You make me," he grinned. "I really don't know what I'm talking about. I'm –"

"It's alright," I then said and propped onto one elbow, locking eyes with him. "I think I made you say enough."

"You do?"

"Yes. And actually, this helped."

"Helped? What do you mean by that?"

"Your words helped me understand. You know, it's pretty hard to look into your… mind, Tom, I had always trouble seeing through you. But now, well, I can only guess, but still, that's progress!"

"Come here," he then simply said and pulled me into a warm embrace. His arms wrapped tightly around my body, I snuggled against him, while he rested his chin on my shoulder. "You know, I… I never –" His voice was feeble and with his face pressed against my hair, I could barely understand him. I turned my head a little. "Ginny, I don't want you to think that I don't trust you just because I might behave like it. I just never… I've always thought trust is rather overrated. I've learned to only trust myself these last years… actually, my whole life. You –" He stopped mid-sentence, only tightening the embrace.

I pulled him into a sitting position and wrapped my arms around his waist as I leant my head against his collarbones. "I had an effect?"

"You can say that, yes," was his reply, before he gently kissed my forehead.

"I'm glad we talked about this," I said after a while. "That makes it… more real, doesn't it?"

"It does," he said and leant back to look at me.

We watched each other for a moment or longer, before he let go of me and got up from bed. My gaze followed him to his desk where he rummaged through his bag, books and parchment rolls, before he leant his arms onto the table and lowered his head. I tilted my head while my eyes wandered over his exposed torso. _Forgive me for having the thoughts I can't push away! _Just as I wanted to look away, he turned around and faced me.

I met his gaze with confusion washing over me.

"Let me take you to the Chamber of Secrets!"

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_**A/N:** Happy belated New Year everyone! As for a little Christmas or New Year's gift, I present you a new chapter of this very story. It might be a little short and might not have a lot of action or whatever in it, but it has been sitting, ready as it was, on my hard drive for too long. And as I'm a little stressed right now due to major university work, I'll give you this, hoping that you won't be too disappointed if the next chapter might take even longer. But I'm doing my best to update more. I swear!_

_So. What do you think thus far? Any ideas where this is leading Ginny and Tom? Is the plot going into the right direction? Tell me!:)_


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